CHAG PURIM SAMEACH 5771 - HAPPY PURIM

HAPPY PURIM!

March 19-20, 2011

My wife, the extraordinary Kelly McCormick, and I just made a whole mess of hamentaschen to celebrate Purim.

Get your triangle on all weekend long as we kick off a zany, happy holiday!

You are also invited to hear me defend the noble hamentasch in the first ever Westchester Reform Temple-sponsored LATKE-HAMENTASCH DEBATE, Friday Night, March 18th, at 7:45 PM Kabbalat Shabbat Services at WRT. I will be facing off against my esteemed adversary, Rabbi Jan Katzew, Director of Lifelong Learning for the Union for Reform Judaism.

Shabbat Shalom and B'te'avon (Bon Appetit)!

COOKIE-DOUGH HAMENTASCHEN (DAIRY)

adapted from Judy Zeidler, The Gourmet Jewish Cook. New York: William Morrow and Co., Inc. 1988, pp. 116-117

Makes 5 to 6 dozen

1/4 pound unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream Cheese Filling (below)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until well blended. Beat in 2 of the eggs, blending thoroughly. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt and blend until the dough is smooth.

Transfer to a floured board and divide the dough into 3 or 4 portions for easier handling. Flatten each portion with the palm of your hand and roll it out 1/4 inch thick. With a scalloped or plain cookie cutter, cut into 2 1/2-inch rounds. Place 1 heaping teaspoon of filling into the center of each round. Fold the edges of the dough toward the center to form a triangle, leaving a bit of the filling visible in the center. Pinch the edges to seal them.

Place the hamentaschen 1/2 inch apart on a lightly greased foil-lined baking sheet and brush with the remaining egg, lightly beaten. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to racks to cool.

CREAM CHEESE FILLING (this stuff is AMAZING)

adapted from Kerry M. Olitzky & Ronald H. Isaacs, The Second How To Handbook For Jewish Living. Hoboken, NJ: KTAV Publishing House, 1996. pp. 198-199.

3/4 cup brown sugar

3 ounces cream cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional: add sliced almonds)

Best if chilled. Mix all ingredients. Fill dough and bake as per directions above.