Moishe House Purim Table
Moishe House Purim Table
Purim is a joyous holiday that breaks up winter's gloom. Marked by parties, sharing sweets and drinking, it commemorates the survival of the Jewish people in ancient Persia. According to the Book of Esther, Haman, an advisor to king Ahasuerus, plotted to kill the Jews of Persia, but was thwarted by Queen Esther, with the aid of her guardian, Mordechai and an elaborate feast. One of the holiday’s signature foods, hamantaschen, symbolizes Haman’s pockets, hat, or ears, depending on which tradition you follow. In different communities, special holiday treats are prepared for parties, but It is also customary to exchange sweets and baked goods with family and friends in a tradition called mishloach manot (Hebrew for “sending goods”).
We hope you will be inspired to make something special to share with friends and family to celebrate Purim and brighten up winter time.
4 recipes
Cheese Sambusak (Savory Cheese Hand Pie)
Ingredients
- 1 lb. hard, salty cheese (like feta, kashkaval, sulguni, kasseri, or a combination), grated
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoons cottage cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- sesame seeds, for sprinkling
- Iraqi Purim Dough
Hamantaschen With Dulce de Leche Filling
Ingredients
For the dough
- 2 ½ cups + 3 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- ½ cup + 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅔ cup butter room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Zest of 1 lemon
For the dulce de leche filling
- 1 - 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For garnish
- 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
Boulukunio (Almond and Sesame Brittle)
Ingredients
For the candy:
- 2 cups hulled sesame seeds
- About 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
- ½ cup blanched slivered almonds, lightly toasted
- Vegetable oil for greasing the baking sheet
For the syrup:
- ½ cup honey
- ½ cup water
- 1½ cups sugar
Special equipment:
- Candy thermometer
Beigli (Pastry Roulade Filled With Poppy Seeds and Walnuts)
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 4 ⅓ cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small cubes, at room temperature
- 1 ounce compressed fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ⅓ cup lukewarm whole milk
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- ⅓ cup dry white wine
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
For the poppy seed filling:
- 1 cup finely ground poppy seeds
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
For the walnut filling:
- 1 cup walnuts
- 3 tablespoons whole milk
- ⅓ cup sugar
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon brandy (optional)
- 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
For the egg wash:
- 1 large egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
Recipes
1
Cheese Sambusak (Savory Cheese Hand Pie)
Ingredients
- 1 lb. hard, salty cheese (like feta, kashkaval, sulguni, kasseri, or a combination), grated
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoons cottage cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- sesame seeds, for sprinkling
- Iraqi Purim Dough
2
Hamantaschen With Dulce de Leche Filling
Ingredients
For the dough
- 2 ½ cups + 3 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- ½ cup + 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅔ cup butter room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Zest of 1 lemon
For the dulce de leche filling
- 1 - 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For garnish
- 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
3
Boulukunio (Almond and Sesame Brittle)
Ingredients
For the candy:
- 2 cups hulled sesame seeds
- About 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
- ½ cup blanched slivered almonds, lightly toasted
- Vegetable oil for greasing the baking sheet
For the syrup:
- ½ cup honey
- ½ cup water
- 1½ cups sugar
Special equipment:
- Candy thermometer
4
Beigli (Pastry Roulade Filled With Poppy Seeds and Walnuts)
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 4 ⅓ cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- Finely grated zest of 2 lemons
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small cubes, at room temperature
- 1 ounce compressed fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ⅓ cup lukewarm whole milk
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- ⅓ cup dry white wine
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
For the poppy seed filling:
- 1 cup finely ground poppy seeds
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
For the walnut filling:
- 1 cup walnuts
- 3 tablespoons whole milk
- ⅓ cup sugar
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon brandy (optional)
- 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
For the egg wash:
- 1 large egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
Listen to the Story
About Jewish Food Society
The Jewish Food Society is a non-profit organization that works to preserve, celebrate, and revitalize Jewish culinary heritage from around the world in order to provide a deeper connection to Jewish life. Through our digital archive of family recipes and the stories behind them, and creative public programs and our podcast that bring the archive to life, we aim to use food as a platform for engaging with Jewish Culture.
Do you have a favorite Purim recipe? Does your family have a Purim story you can share? We would love to hear about it, and so would your guests.
We encourage you to think of recipes as a gateway to storytelling around the table, a way to share your own family story and to learn about that of your guests.
READ or listen to Ilana Isaac and Ayelet Izraeli's' story about their family's journey from Baghdad to Israel and about keeping their Iraqi Purim tradition alive. MAKE their family's Cheese Sambusak (savory hand-pies) to share.
Try Mia Zimman's Dulce de Leche filled Hamantaschen for an Argentinian twist on the classic Purim treat. The caramel-like spread has been a part of her husband Alejandro’s family table for over 100 years. Mia says they bring together her daughter Luna's identities: “She’s Latina, Jewish, American — she’s got so many cultural identities. It just feels really good to put together a few different pieces into one.”
The sweet Boulukunio, "an almond and sesame seed brittle is an ancient recipe that dates back generations from the home cooks of medieval Spain,” explains Stella Hanan Cohen. READ more about her family story and journey from Spain to Zimbabwe.
MAKE Beigli, a pastry log filled with poppyseeds or walnuts, a traditional Romanian pastry from Yonit Naftali. As a 10 year-old, delivering packages called mishloach manot to her neighbors, Yonit felt embarrassed by her mothers' recipes, they were different from what anyone around them made. But one year, a neighbor told Yonit how she waited for this special gift. “I remember how my embarrassment became pride. I really remember this moment," Yonit says.
Conversation:
* Do you have family traditions you feel strongly about preserving? Or that you find embarrassing?
* Are there dishes or foods that speak to your family's past or that speak of home for you?
* What stories do these dishes tell about you or your family's identity and affiliation?
* It is traditional to share mishloach manot (a gift of food) with others on Purim -- what would you make to share with friends or family that speaks to who you are?
