Purim Cookies
Easy to make and even prettier to look at, these cookies are almost too cute to eat!
Everyone loves a good cookie and an easy cookie recipe is enjoyed by both bakers and eaters alike. Simply mix together a few pantry staples, add a touch of flare with filling, and instantly achieve oohs and ahhs with almost no effort. This is such a fun little package of deliciousness that looks almost too pretty to eat, but we don’t let that stop us from indulging in these sweet treats! These cookies have a centuries-long history and are often made to honor the festival of Purim, a feast that commemorates how Jewish people living in ancient Persia thwarted oppression from the ruling empire. We think these are great way to celebrate!
Add a little character to each cookie with a variety of jam fillings; we particularly like orange marmalade and raspberry, but you can go with whatever you prefer or have on hand. And part of the fun of these cookies is getting helpers involved; have kiddos put on their chef hat and apron and help with kneading and rolling out dough, cutting circles and dropping dollops of jam into the cookie. Everyone is rewarded at the end when these come out of the oven! Purim cookies make for a delightful contribution to a cookie exchange, or an adorable little gift to share.
Purim Cookies
Yield(s): Serves 30-35 cookies
3 hours, 45 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups flour
- 1 egg, room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ sticks (3/4 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoon water, room temperature
- 1 (18 oz) jar raspberry, apricot or marmalade jam
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease 2-3 cookie sheets.
- Combine flour and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
- In a large bowl or mixer, cream together butter, sugar until creamy, 2-3 minutes, then add vanilla and egg, lightly beaten.
- Slowly add flour mixture into wet ingredients and mix until a crumbly dough forms. Begin kneading dough with hands, adding water in ½ teaspoon increments until dough feels slightly tacky.
- Wrap up dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Once the dough has chilled, dust a clean surface and rolling pin with flour, and roll dough to ¼ - inch thickness, then flip dough, flour surface again, and roll dough to ⅛ - inch thickness.
- Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out several circles and set aside. Gather scraps into a ball and re-roll dough, using as much as is available.
- Place a teaspoon of jam filling in the center of each circle. Fold sides and bottom of circle to form a triangle, then place cookie onto a greased cookie sheet.
- Evenly space cookies 1-inch apart and bake for 20-25 minutes or until edges are just golden brown.
- Cool before serving.
Recipe adapted from Tori's Kitchen