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Source: The Foods of Israel Today, by Joan Nathan - Reprinted with permission.
Joan Nathan has had a thirty year love affair with Israel. In the early 1970s she worked for Mayor Teddy Kollek of Jerusalem and has returned frequently since then. She is the author of 7 cookbooks of which two are on Israel. She is the host and co-producer of a PBS TV series based on her prizewinning book, Jewish Cooking in America that is in its second season. She lives in Washington, D.C.

Dough Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter or pareve margarine 1/2 cup sugar 1 large egg 1/2 tsp. vanilla 1 Tbsp. orange juice 2 1/2 - 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 1/2 Tsp. salt Filling Ingredients: 1 cup walnuts 3/4 cup sugar 1/2 Tsp. vanilla 1/2 lemon, quartered and seeded 1/2 orange, quartered and seeded 1 Tbsp. rum 2 figs, roughly diced 1/2 Tsp. ground cinnamon 1/2 cup orange marmalade or apricot jam

Preparation:
1. To make the dough cream the butter or margarine with the sugar. Add the egg, vanilla and orange juice and continue to cream until smooth. A food processor is great for this.
2. Add 2 1/2 cups flour baking powder, and salt. Mix or process until a ball of dough is formed, adding flour as needed. Chill for 2-3 hours or overnight.
3. Meanwhile, to make the filling, place all of the filling ingredients in a food processor and pulse until chopped but not pureed. You should have approximately 2 cups. Set aside until the dough is chilled.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a cookie sheet.
5. Roll 1/4 of the dough out on a lightly floured board to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut into 3-inch circles. Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle. To shape the Hamantaschen, first brush water around the rim of the circle with your finger. Pull the edges of the dough up to form a triangle around the filling and pinch the 3 corners together. Leaving a small triangular opening in the center. Transfer to the cookie sheet and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until the tops are golden.

Comment: With any leftover dough, you can use Nutella or chocolate chips as a filling.

Yield: About 40 cookies.

Date Submitted: November 18, 2002

Section: Holidays, Cakes and Pastries, and Dough