Citrus Hamantaschen with Rabri and Nut Filling

Jewish-Indian Fusion.

Citrus Hamantaschen with Rabri and Nut filling is a very traditional, but not so traditional, sweet treat or cookie. I make it to celebrate my love for different cultural festivals. In this case it’s Indian Holi, and Jewish Purim. Anyway, now you might be wondering, why they are traditional and yet not traditional at the same time.  Hamantaschen cookies are totally Jewish, but the filling I did is Indian, and so close to my heart. Hence, somewhat traditional and somewhat a cultural fusion.

No matter what culture, religion or country you are from, there is always one thing that connects everyone together. That is the love for food. Food has no language yet it speaks in a way that everyone understands and can connect. There is nothing like exploring different cultures and learning about their food. Additionally, combining them with your own cultural flavors and putting them out to the table is awesome. For me this is the way to unite all different kinds of people into one. And when I learnt about Jewish Hamentaschen cookies, I decided to fill them with the flavors of gujiya/karanji that I grew up eating.  

Food Brings Us Together.

This was another one of the recipes that I did for The Supper Club Magazine last spring. I had such a great time playing with flavors in my kitchen to create something for the Global Community. There are be so many different kinds of festivals of all religions. However there is one thing that remains the same in all of them. That is having a good quality family time, cooking and eating together. This is pure happiness. 

Everyone has their favorite treat or food for certain festivals/holidays. No matter how old we get or which country we live in, there are certain childhood foods that will always remain deep-rooted in us. There are certain flavors that I grew up eating and I keep going back to them. I guess it shows how connected I am to my roots. India is a country where people celebrate anything they possibly can, no kidding. Be it victory in sports, religious holidays or political victories, name it. They even celebrate seasonal changes! With that said, these citrus hamentaschen with rabri and nut filling are perfect celebratory cookies. 

Celebrating Spring Back Home.

Spring is the season of new life. Seeds start to sprout, birds start to chirp, and everything starts to become colorful. Celebrating new life and new seasons is simply amazing. Going back down the memory lane, I remember there is only one spring festival that I never ever celebrated. However I absolutely loved watching people celebrate it. This is the ‘Festival of Colors’ AKA HOLI. I would sit in my room locked up and watch the crowd from my patio throwing powdered colors and water balloons on each other while dancing on the streets. Families would start preparing sweets, days in advance for the holiday. I can still taste the sweet aroma of these baked sweet called karanji or gujiya filled with nuts that my mom made every year for the Holi festival. The sweet aroma of saffron and citrusy cardamom is a match made in heaven. Every family had their own recipe for making these gujiyas, and of course mom’s recipes were and still are the best.  

And Now A Hamantaschen Spring.

Moving to a different country I learnt about other holidays that fall exactly at a similar time as Holi. This got me excited to combine the 2 different cultural flavors into one. Not knowing the real significance of Purim, a Jewish festival, all I knew was that I loved their cookies – Hamantaschen during this holiday. Coming from a farmers family, who raised cows and always had the freshest milk, I decided to do an ‘Indianised’ version of them. This was with hamantaschen dough in its unique shape, rabri (a sweet made with milk) as the base filling, and my mom’s karanji filling as the top filling. I added thyme, citrus and lavender in the dough to give a refreshing spring flavor. Rabri has a very delicate and sweet aroma of saffron. While the top filling has a nutty and buttery flavor from ghee and it also adds a nice crunchy texture to the cookies. I think of an evening tea time with family and friends, savoring these delicious and delicate cookies and making beautiful memories for life.  

If you make these Citrus Hamantaschen with Rabri and Nut Filling cookies, I would love to see your version, so do share with me on my Facebook page , or Instagram.

If you want to try some delicious and traditional Holi dessert then this Thandai recipe would be something you would love as much as I do. Also check out the Thandai Panna Cotta with strawberry ginger and hibiscus tea jello.

5 from 9 votes

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Citrus Hamantaschen with Rabri and Nut Filling

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

40 mins

Resting Time

1 hr

Total Time

1 hr

 

Citrusy Hamantaschen with Rabri and Nut Filling cookies are simply a fusion of Jewish and Indian cultures. These delicate cookies are made by using the hamantaschen dough for the cookie base, rabri (a sweet made with milk), and gujiya/Karanji filling for the inner filling. This is not without edge of course, so added thyme, citrus and lavender in the dough to give some refreshing spring flavors. To top it up, the cookies have a nice buttery and crunchy texture that leave you wanting more. 

Course: Cookies

Cuisine: Indian, Jewish

Keyword: holi, cookies, hamentaschen, gujiya, purim

Servings: 35 to 40 cookies

Author: Esha

Ingredients

For Hamentaschen Dough:

• 300 grams all-purpose flour
• 113 grams butter, room temp (1/2 cup)
• 50 grams sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 1-4 tsp water, as needed
• 55 grams cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp green cardamom powder
• 1/2 tsp lavender
• 1 tsp dried thyme

For The Filling:

• 200-225 grams rabri (See the Rabri recipe below)
• 20 grams dried figs, chopped
• 20 grams dates, pitted and chopped
• 50 grams cashews, chopped
• 50 grams pistachios, chopped
• 1 tbsp poppy seed
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 1 tsp green cardamom powder
• 1/4 tsp saffron strands
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 50 ml orange juice, freshly squeezed
• 15 ml water

For Rabri (this yields 650 grams approximately):

• 1.5 litres whole milk
• 150 grams khoya (Incase khoya is unavailable, see below for alternative method to make at home)
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1.5 tsp green cardamom powder
• 8-10 strands saffron
• 2 tbsp water, to steep saffron

Instructions

For Hamentaschen Dough:

1. Whisk dry ingredients in a bowl to combine (flour, baking powder, salt, cardamom, lavender, and thyme). 

2. In a mixer add chopped butter and sugar. Whip it with a whip attachment on high till creamy and fluffy. 

3. Add egg and whip till it’s well incorporated.

4. Then add vanilla, orange zest and cream cheese and whip to incorporate. 

5. Add the flour mix and whip just to combine. 

6. Slowly add water as needed. Do not over whip the dough.

7. Once the flour and water is combined, work with your hands gently to form dough. Do not knead it hard. If the crumbs feel too dry, add little water (1/2 tablespoon at a time). 

8. Wrap the dough tightly with cling wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour (preferable over night) 

For The Filling:

1. In a saucepan add the orange juice, water, saffron, maple syrup, figs, and dates. Bring to boil and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Don’t overcook it. You just want the dates and figs to absorb all the flavor and start to thicken up.

2. Take off the heat and add all the other ingredients (nuts, ghee, poppy seeds, and cardamom powder). Mix well and let cool. It will thicken once it’s cooled down. 

3. You could make this filling and store in an airtight container in refrigerator.  

For Rabri:

1. Soak saffron strands in water and keep aside.

2. Boil milk.

3. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for about an hour, stirring every 15 minutes to avoid scorching. 

4. Once the milk is reduced 1/3rd, add khoya and sugar.

5. Keep stirring till it gets thick and creamy. This might take 15-20 minutes. 

6. Add cardamom powder and saffron water and mix well.  

7. Turn off the heat and let it cool before transferring into a storage container.

8. At this point, rabri can be stored in the fridge for few days or it can be frozen for much longer time. 

Forming Cookies:

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F (177°C).  

2. Line the sheet pan with parchment paper. 

3. Roll out the dough to 1/4 - 1/8 inch thickness. Thicker dough might be harder to shape and will be too doughy after it’s baked. 

4. Using 3-3.5 inch circular cookie cutter, cut out the circles and with a spatula transfer the cut outs on a prepared sheet pan. 

5. Wrap the left over dough and put it back in refrigerator to chill. You can roll out again and cut out with the cutter. 

6. Put a dollop of rabri in the center and put the nut filling on top.

7. Egg wash the edges of the dough so it will stick when it’s folded. 

8. Grab the left side of the circle and fold towards the center, just to cover 1/3rd of the circle. 

9. Now grab the right side and fold it towards the center, overlapping the top part of the left side to make a triangle. Make sure the filling in the center is not fully covered. 

10. Lastly, grab the bottom part and fold it over to complete the triangle. Make sure you tuck it in a way that all the corners of the triangle has one fold over and one under to complete a uniform triangle. The top folds should be in anti clockwise position and the cookie should look like a pinwheel. The filling from the center should be visible. 

11. Chill in refrigerator for 10 minutes. 

12. Take it out and egg wash them. Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown. If the dough is thicker, it might take longer time and if it’s too thin, it might get baked faster. 

13. Cool completely on a wire rack before storing them in air tight container. 

14. Enjoy these cookies with your coffee or tea. These also make a nice festive gift for friends and family. 

Incase Khoya is unavailable to you, then use alternative method to make at home:

Method 1:

1. Heat 1-2 teaspoon ghee/clarified butter in pan. Empty the ricotta container into the pan and cook on medium low heat. Keep stirring to avoid scorching. It will start to release moisture. Keep cooking till all the moisture is evaporated and it is solidified to a soft doughy consistency. You could add 1 teaspoon of dry milk powder in the cooking process. This will speed up the cooking. You don’t have to, if there is no milk powder available.

Method 2:

1. Take a cup of dry milk powder. Add 5-7 teaspoons of condensed milk and stir. Microwave on high for 1-2 minutes (30 second interval). Make sure to check every 30 seconds to avoid burn. It should be solidified to a soft doughy consistency. 

Recipe Notes

If storing for longer time, you could put it in refrigerator. To make it fresh again, bake for 5-10 minutes and cool on wire rack.