Slice and Bake Hamantaschen

Slice and Bake Hamantaschen are buttery sugar cookies with flavored centers. This tasty twist on traditional Purim cookies are quick to make and fun to eat.

Why you’ll love this recipe

The Jewish holiday of Purim is a joyful celebration involving costumes, noise makers, and triangular cookies called hamantaschen. Traditionally, hamantaschen are pocket cookies filled with fruit, nuts, or poppy seeds.

Making traditional Purim cookies isn’t hard, but it is time consuming. The most frustrating part for many bakers, is keeping the folded and sealed cookie from opening up in the oven.  

This slice and bake version eliminates the whole filling and folding processes.

These treats start with a soft butter cookie dough which requires several chilling times to be firm enough for shaping and cutting. After making the dough, ⅔ is removed from the bowl. This will be the uncolored outer triangle. 

Flavor and color is added to the remaining ⅓ of the dough. Both portions are wrapped in plastic wrap and placed in the refrigerator or freezer until no longer sticky (about 30-40 minutes in the freezer).

Once chilled, the colored portion is rolled into a 12” long log. The sides of the log are flattened to create a triangular log. The log is then chilled again until very firm, so that it will not lose its shape when wrapped in the uncolored dough.

When the triangle log is firm, the uncolored dough is rolled out into a flat rectangle. The triangle log is then rolled up in the uncolored dough. After chilling again (about 40 minutes in the freezer) the cookies are ready to slice and bake.

The actual hands-on time for these cookies is minimal, but the entire process including refrigeration in between takes about 2 hours.  

 I made this recipe three times, each time with a different flavored center.

Instructions

This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until creamy. Gradually add flour, salt and baking powder. Beat until combined.
2. Remove ⅔ of the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 40 minutes to chill until easy to handle and no longer sticky.
3. To the ⅓ dough remaining in the mixer bowl, add the flavoring and gel food color for your choice of hamantaschen “filling”. Mix to completely distribute.
4. On a sheet of plastic wrap, shape the colored dough into a 12” log. (It is not necessary to smooth the sides at this time. Wrap in the plastic wrap and freeze for about 15 minutes or until firm. Once firm, shape the colored dough into a triangle-shaped log, 12” long. Re-wrap in plastic and freeze until very firm.
5. When ready to assemble, roll out the plain dough between 2 sheets of wax paper to form a rectangle 12” x 6”. Place the colored triangle log along one long edge of the rectangle. Use the wax paper underneath to roll up the triangle log in the plain dough, pressing the plain dough against the log as it rolls. Pinch together and smooth out the seam to seal.
6. Wrap in the wax paper and freeze for at least 15 minutes. The firmer the dough becomes, the easier it is to slice without becoming misshapen.
7. When ready to bake: Slice the dough log into ¼” thick slices and place 2” apart on parchment lined baking sheets.
8. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes until edges are golden brown.

Storage

Covered in plastic wrap, this dough for can be stored in the refrigerator for at least a week or in the freezer for several weeks.

Once baked, these triangle cookies stay fresh for up to 2 weeks.

Store at room temperature in an airtight container or freezer weight ziplock bag.

More Jewish holiday recipes

This Hamantaschen Recipe makes soft, cake like Purim cookies filled with fun fillings from jam to peanut butter cups!

Honey Cake is a Rosh Hashanah tradition, but you will want to enjoy this moist loaf all year!

Try Apples and Honey Popcorn for a twist on tradition. Rosh Hashanah apples and honey flavor in a crisp and crunchy popcorn glaze.

Lemon Sugar Cookie Stars are crunchy cut-out sugar cookies that can be decorated for any holiday.

Rugelach is a buttery pastry dough cookie wrapped around delicious fillings. Try Raspberry Rugelach in crescent shapes or Chocolate Rugelach in spiraled slices.

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Slice and Bake Hamantaschen

Slice and Bake Hamantaschen are buttery sugar cookies with flavored centers. This tasty twist on traditional Purim cookies are quick to make and fun to eat.

5 from 1 vote

Print Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Jewish

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Chill time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Servings: 36

Calories: 110kcal

Author: Wendy Sondov

Adapted From: Landolakes.com

Ingredients

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder

For Chocolate Filling

• ½ teaspoon cocoa ¼ cup finely chopped chocolate
• ¼ cup chocolate finely chopped

For Strawberry Filling

• ¼ teaspoon strawberry flavoring
• pink gel food color

For Lemon Filling

• ¼ teaspoon lemon flavoring 2 tablespoons ,
• 2 tablespoons nonpareil sprinkles
• yellow gel food color

Instructions

• In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
• Beat in egg and vanilla until creamy.
• Gradually add flour, salt and baking powder. Beat until combined.
• Remove ⅔ of the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 40 minutes to chill until easy to handle and no longer sticky.
• To the ⅓ dough remaining in the mixer bowl, add the flavoring and gel food color for your choice of hamantashen “filling”. Mix to completely distribute.
• On a sheet of plastic wrap, shape the colored dough into a 12” log. (It is not necessary to smooth the sides at this time. Wrap in the plastic wrap and freeze for about 15 minutes or until firm.
• Once firm, shape the colored dough into a triangle-shaped log, 12” long. Re-wrap in plastic and freeze until very firm.
• When ready to assemble, roll out the plain dough between 2 sheets of wax paper to form a rectangle 12” x 6”. Place the colored triangle log along one long edge of the rectangle. Use the wax paper underneath to roll up the triangle log in the plain dough, pressing the plain dough against the log as it rolls. Pinch together and smooth out the seam to seal.
• Wrap in the wax paper and freeze for at least 15 minutes. The firmer the dough becomes, the easier it is to slice without becoming misshapen.
• When ready to bake: Preheat oven to 350° F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Slice the dough log into ¼” thick slices and place 2” apart on the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake for 8-10 minutes until edges are golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet then cool completely on wire racks.
• Store at room temperature in an airtight container or freezer weight ziplock bag for up to 2 weeks.

Notes

Packing tips

Wrap stacks of 2-3 cookies in plastic wrap. Stack the wrapped bundles in a column in a freezer weight zip lock bag or plastic storage container. Use crumpled tissue paper or wax paper if needed to ensure the cookies don’t move in transit.

Nutrition

Calories: 110kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 18mg | Sodium: 22mg | Potassium: 17mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 164IU | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 1mg

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First Published: March 23, 2016. Last Updated: February 25, 2022. Updated for additional information and better reader experience.

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