Hamantaschen (Purim — Jewish Triangle Pastry)

Hamantaschen — the triangular filled pastry cookies of Purim — are one of the most recognisable symbols of the most joyful holiday in the Jewish calendar. The shape (a triangle with a sunken filling visible at the centre) represents Haman's three-cornered hat in the Purim story (Book of Esther), and they are given as gifts (mishloach manot) to friends and family. The dough can be either a shortcrust-style (more crumbly and rich) or a yeasted dough (more bread-like and substantial); the traditional fillings are poppy seed (mohn) and prune-apricot (lekvar), though modern interpretations include chocolate, halva, dulce de leche, and almost everything else. The classic poppy seed filling — poppy seeds cooked with sugar, honey, and lemon until thick and jammy — is one of Jewish baking's most distinctive flavours and deserves particular attention.