by Emily Jacobs
Staff Writer
Leah Hadad’s story is one of hard work and dedication. Hadad, owner of Tribes a Dozen and creator of Voila! Hallah premade mixes, worked for five years to perfect her recipe and business plan in hopes of creating delicious and practical premade challah mixes. As of July 2012, Hadad’s three varieties, Traditional, Wholey Wheat and Simply Spelt can now be found on Amazon.com and in local kosher, gourmet and specialty food stores.
Just in time for Purim, Hadad used her traditional Voila! Hallah mix to create a recipe for a giant chocolate-walnut hamantashen. Be sure to check out our digital magazine, located at www.washingtonjewishweek.com, to watch a video of Hadad making her delicious Purim treat.
Dough:
1 box of Traditional Voilà! Hallah, or any of the other mixes;
1 ¼ teaspoons yeast (packet included)
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons warm milk, 110°-115° F
1 egg + 1 egg yolk, room temperature
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced
¼ cup sour cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Chocolate-Walnut Filling:
8 ounces dark chocolate, or your favorite
1 cup walnuts
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup raspberry jam
Egg wash:
1 leftover egg white
1 tablespoon sugar
Instructions:
Pour the baking mix into a bowl of a stand mixer. With a spoon, create a well in the middle. Pour the yeast into the well and pour the milk on top. Let stand for 5 minutes to activate. Add eggs, butter, sour cream and vanilla extract. Mix with the paddle attachment for 10 minutes on low. Scrape sides of bowl and paddle attachment as necessary. Scrape dough from the bowl and shape dough into a smooth ball and place in the refrigerator to cool for 20 minutes. This can be done a day in advance.
Place the chocolate, walnut and cinnamon in a food processor bowl. Pulsate to grind to small pea-size granules.
Take dough out of the refrigerator. Place parchment paper on your counter or board. Place the dough on top of the center of the paper and roll into a large circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Spread the jam all over the dough, leaving a two-inch clear margin. Sprinkle the chocolate-walnut mixture evenly on top of the jam. If you wish, reserve 2 tablespoons of the mix to sprinkle on top of the cookie later. Fold three sides of the circle over the filling to create a triangle. Lift the top corner of the parchment on one side and bring it over the dough to make a point at the top. Peel the paper back to the counter. Do the same with the other side. Then fold up the side closest to you to overlap the other folded sides. The sides need to overlap so that only a small triangular window is left in the middle to show the filling. Press to seal the overlapping seams. Whisk the leftover egg white and the sugar and brush all over the hamantashen. Brush the seams with gentle pressure to smooth the edges. Let rest for about 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Brush the hamantashen with the egg wash again and sprinkle the reserved chocolate-walnut mixture. Bake on the middle rack for 25-30 minutes. Let cool on a rack for 10 minutes before serving.
To serve, cut into individual triangles. You could make individual hamantashens by dividing the dough into 18 balls. Process the jam with the chocolate and walnuts. Use a heaping teaspoon of filling for each hamantashen. Enjoy! © 2013 Tribes-A-Dozen, by Leah Hadad
