Gluten Free Orange Date Hamantaschen
Hamantaschen is an Ashkenazi Jewish triangular pastry, often filled with many variations. Poppyseed, dates, jams etc. Traditionally, these are eaten during the Jewish holiday of Purim. Haman is the villain of the story of Purim and the name translates to Haman’s ears or hat? Oh so appetizing. You can make the filling any way you like. Since I am a huge fan of anything chocolate orange, I will make a chocolate orange filling and update the blog when I have a nice recipe. For now, this recipe was perfect and you can’t tell it’s gluten-free flour at all! If you love your gluten, then use any regular all-purpose flour as a substitute. The dough has a beautifully mild orange flavour and so does the filling which is primarily dates and walnuts.
Dough Ingredients:
1 cup gluten-free flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Baking Flour).
1/2 cup almond meal
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1/2 tbsp orange juice
zest of about 3/4 of an orange
1/8 cup oil ( I used olive oil)
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
Filling Ingredients:
11 Medjool dates pitted
1/2 cup orange juice
150 grams chopped walnuts
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
1/8 tsp allspice
Method:
Mix in dry ingredients (flour, almond meal, baking powder, salt) in a medium bowl
In a large bowl, add wet ingredients (orange juice, orange zest, oil, sugar, eggs) and whisk until combined
Slowly in batches, add the dry ingredients/flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Stir a few times until the dough starts to come together. Transfer to a flat, floured surface and knead a few times. (Personally, I was able to do it in the bowl with no problem, so you can opt for that option too, just remember to flour the bowl so the dough does not stick). To knead: simply fold the dough and punch it a few times or massage it with your fists, then fold again and repeat. You need to do this about 5-7 times or so.
The dough should be smooth and not sticky. If it is too dry, add orange juice, 1 teaspoon at a time, and if it is too sticky/wet, add gluten-free flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Shape the dough into a flat disc and wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours
For the filling, add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth (I like it to be somewhat chunky). Make sure to scrape down the sides of the processor with a rubber spatula to make sure everything is combined. Set aside in a bowl and cover.
When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350F. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil (if using foil, make sure to rub melted butter, cooking oil, or coconut oil evenly in the pan to allow for a smooth transfer).
Remove dough from the fridge, using a rolling pin, roll it out to a lightly floured surface to about 4 mm thickness. Using a glass or a cookie cutter, cut out circles and transfer them to the baking sheet, leaving space between the cookies. Roll the scraps of dough together and repeat until all the dough is used.
Spoon a teaspoon of date filling in the middle of each circle. Fold into a triangle: fold the left side on an angle, followed by the right side, and then the button, forming a triangle-shaped picket. Pinch the seams firmly. Repeat with remaining dough.
Bake for 20 minutes at 350F. Cool for 5 minutes and then transfer to a plate or cooling rack to cool.
Will keep in a sealed container for days, refrigerated. You can also freeze them to extend their shelf life for about a week
Enjoy! :)
