We had a bit of fun developing our own sesame inspired take on a traditional Hamantaschen, by adding halva, tahini and extra sesame seeds! We used a basic dough recipe by Jake Cohen and The FeedFeed Team which was super easy and can be used as the base for any other filling option! The fillings are all vegan, but if you're looking for a vegan dough recipe, The Nosher has a great one here. 

This recipe makes approx. 18 HalvaTaschen - they are most delicious eaten straight out of the oven but will last approximately 4 days if kept in an airtight container! 

INGREDIENTS
For the dough:
1.5 c all purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt
1.5 sticks (225g) unsalted butter at room temp.
2/3 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs (1 for the dough + 1 whisked egg for an egg wash)
2 tbs toasted sesame seeds

For the filling:
There are endless options to fill your Hamantaschen! Here are two fun twists from us! 

Option 1: use small balls of Date & Tahini Chocolate Fudge (recipe here, we recommend making a full batch, freezing half of the balls for later and using the rest for the HalvaTaschen filling!)
Option 2: chocolate tahini ganache with chunks of halva

Ingredients for Option 2 Filling 
1 c dark chocolate chips
3 tbsp Seed + Mill Organic Tahini
1/2 c Seed + Mill halva (any flavor would be delicious, we used Pistachio!)
1 tbsp chopped pistachios (optional)

STEPS
1. To make filling Option 2: gently melt chocolate chips over double boiler or in microwave. Once melted, stir through 3 tbs tahini and allow mixture to cool.
2. Make dough: in a medium bowl, whisk flour and salt to incorporate. In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy (approx. 2 mins). With motor running, add vanilla and egg, then mix to incorporate. Add dry ingredients and mix on low speed until a smooth dough forms.
3. Place dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll out to ¼-inch thick. Using a 3¼-inch ring cutter, cut out as many rounds as you can, placing the rounds on a parchment lined baking sheet. Re-roll dough scraps and repeat the process.
4. For Option 1 filling: roll a small ball of the mixture and place in the center of each dough circle, leaving a 1/2 inch border.
5. For Option 2 filling: spoon 1 tbs chocolate tahini ganache onto dough round and place a small chunk of halva over the top. Add extra chopped pistachios (if using). 
6. Fold in dough from three sides to form a triangle and pinch edges together to seal, leaving a small opening over filling.
7. Make sure the HalvaTaschen are spaced about 2-inches apart from each other (they might spread while baking). Chill for 1 hour, then re-pinch corners to ensure they’re well sealed.
8. Pre-heat oven to 350F. Once oven is hot, brush edges with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake for 25 mins (or until the dough is golden).