Chewy pizza crust hamantaschen enclose a rich filling of tomato sauce, olives and gooey, stretchy, melty mozzarella.
I always think there’s something about the nature of Purim that invites you to play with your food. After all, why should the ‘dressing up’ be confined to the children?! Go wild in the kitchen and let your imagination create fun new foods to celebrate this wild and wonderful holiday!
Purim recipe mash-ups
In the past, such Purim-inspired kitchen innovations have led to crunchy fortune cookie hamantaschen, filling and hearty Cornish pasty hamantaschen, and the wonderfully fruity Hot Magen-David Buns. This year, I wanted to make something savoury and delicious. Something that would be the perfect nibble with grown-up drinks at a Purim party.
Hamantaschen ideas
I considered, and then abandoned a few ideas. For instance Spring roll hamantaschen? Yorkshire pudding hamantaschen? Scotch egg hamantaschen?
These ideas were usually discarded because (especially in the case of the latter) it would have been extremely tricky to mould them to the relevant shape. Finally, I settled on pizza hamantaschen because:
- The dough and toppings are easy to rearrange into a hamantaschen shape
- Savoury melty cheesy bites are perfect with everything from wine and beer to whisky and cocktails
- Everyone loves pizza
Pizza hamantaschen – get a pizza the action!
I adapted my family’s tried and tested pizza crust recipe. We have this pizza oven that sits on top of the barbecue, and in the summer we eat a lot of pizza. The recipe made 16 little pizza hamantaschen from one batch of dough, which seemed like a sensible amount.
However, I wasn’t about to fire up the coals in February. So I simply cranked the oven up to super-hot and hoped for the best.
Fast and fabulous pizza hamantaschen
Although these yummy pizza hamantaschen only take 10 minutes to bake, it seemed like forever! The wonderful rich aroma of freshly made pizza had all our mouths watering, and somehow everyone assembled in the kitchen without needing to be called…
What do you need to make pizza hamantaschen
One of the reasons I love pizza is that this truly delicious dish can be assembled from some basic pantry ingredients. To make pizza hamantaschen you will need…
For the dough:
- strong flour
- dry yeast
- salt
- sugar
- olive oil
- hand-hot water
And for the sauce and filling:
- tomato puree (tomato paste)
- olive oil
- dried oregano
- hot water
- sliced olives
- mozarella cheese
- fresh basil (optional)
The proof of the pizzataschen…
My daughter Kipper could barely keep her hands off these delicious morsels long enough for me to take a photo! Even DH was getting impatient. And the pizza hamantaschen didn’t disappoint. Chewily delicious crust around a rich tomato, olive and gooey, stretchy mozzarella filling.
They disappeared before you could say ‘Mordechai and Esther’!
I’m afraid I never got to find out how they taste cold. Next time I’ll make a double (or triple!) batch.
Makes 16 pizza hamantaschen.
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Pizza hamataschen
Ingredients
For the dough
- 4 g dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 125 ml hand-hot water
- 200 g strong white flour
- pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
For the sauce
- 50 g tomato puree
- 2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoon hot water
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
For the filling
- 50 g sliced olives (optional)
- 125 g grated mozzarella cheese
- fresh basil leaves (optional)
Instructions
To make the dough
- Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the hand-hot water and set aside.
- Put the flour, salt and olive oil in the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment fitted. When the yeast mixture begins to foam, add to the bowl and set the motor running on low to combine the ingredients to a dough.
- Turn up the mixer slightly and run for 5-10 minutes to give a smooth, soft and elastic dough. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside to rise while you make the fillings.
Make the tomato sauce
- Combine the tomato puree, olive oil, water and oregano till well mixed.
Make the pizza hamantaschen
- Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F). Line a baking sheet with baking paper or a silicon liner.
- Knock back the dough and knead briefly on a lightly floured surface. Divide into 16 equal pieces.
- Roll/stretch/pat each piece into a circle approximately 7 cm (3 inches) across and about 4 mm (⅛ inch) thick. Spread ½ teaspoon of the tomato sauce over the circle of dough, leaving a 1cm border clear around the edge.
- Add approximately 1 tablespoon grated mozzarella and a few slices of olive, if using.
- Brush a little water around the edge of the dough circle, then bring the edges up and pinch them together to form a hamantaschen shape. Transfer to a lined baking sheet and sprinkle a little more grated cheese over. Top with a basil leaf if desired.
- Repeat until all 16 pieces of dough have been made into hamantaschen.
- Bake the pizza hamantaschen at 220°C (430°F) for around 10 minutes until the dough is golden and crisp and the filling is hot and melty. Serve at once!
Nutrition
More delicious hamantaschen recipes
Looking for more hamantaschen recipes?! Try these classic yeasted poppy seed hamantaschen buns, or these quick and delicious Eccles cake hamantaschen! Or check out this list of the Best Hamantaschen in the World…
You can browse all of my Purim recipes here.
Sheryl
Hello Helen,
Have you ever prepared these in advance
and frozen them? Would you bake them or freeze in an unbaked state? This is a great idea for an upcoming birthday party. I love to bake in advance and freeze so there is less work the day guests arrive.
Thanks. Greetings from Canada.
Helen
Hi Sheryl. I I haven’t made these in advance but I see no reason why they wouldn’t be fine. I would bake them frozen, and then warm through on the day – maybe with a little extra cheese on top? I hope your guests enjoy them! All the best, Helen x.
Andrea @ The Petite Cook
Wow, I’ve never tried hamantaschen but I’m drooling all over the screen! Definitely need to make these soon for my next party.
Helen
Thanks Andrea. I hope you enjoy them!
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche
Oooooh! I’ve never had hamantaschen but I LOVE the look of these!
Helen
Thanks Becca. They usually have a sweet filling like poppy seeds (very traditional), chocolate or something fruity, but I’m definitely enjoying this savoury variation. You should check out the more traditional ones if you get the chance!
Heidi Roberts
These look really delicious! I love how this group has such a wide ethnic group so we really get to see food different from our own!
Helen
Thanks Heidi! Yes, one of the joys of reading different food blogs is always finding something new and interesting. So glad you liked these.
Mairi
Wow this is such a cute idea! I used to work in a bakery where we sold sweet hamantaschen – not as impressive as these though! I’ll be trying them.
Helen
Thanks Mairi. I think the sweet ones needed some competition! I hope you enjoy them.
Traci
I love anything with the word ‘pizza’ in it! These look fun! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Helen
Thanks Traci! I’m a sucker for pizza too.
Jacque Hastert
I eat all things pizza related. I will have to give this recipe a shot.
Helen
Thanks Jacque. Everyone loves pizza!
Julia
I haven’t tried any hamantaschen yet but I can eat anything pizza :)! Like the way they look and I bet they taste delicious!
Helen
Thanks Julia! I know how you feel about pizza 😀
Hamantaschen are usually sweet but I was in a savoury mood…
Liz @ I Heart Vegetables
Those are so cute! What a fun idea. They’d be perfect for a party!
Helen
Thanks Liz. Yes, they make great finger food!