When I first worked on this recipe, I added a few white chocolate chips to the filling, making Raspberry White Chocolate Hamantaschen in Graham Wafer Crust. While delicious, they were a little sweet for my taste — The proportion to filling is much higher than if you were making a big cake and it overpowered it a but for me. But if you love the taste combination, go ahead and add some when you make these — or try some both ways and see what you like more.

You can also replace the raspberry filling with other fruit jams or fillings. Strawberry, blueberry, cherry, etc. would all be delicious. If the jams/fillings have chunks of fruit, spoon a little of the filling onto the dough rounds, then pipe the cheesecake filling on top.

These are delicious! I hope you try them and enjoy!

This recipe makes approximately 36 hamantaschen.

Raspberry Filling

• 400 grams frozen raspberries
• 114 grams sugar (1/2 bag)
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp cold water
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine the raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a pot and place over medium/high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 5-8 minutes, or until the raspberries have completely broken down and the juices are simmering.

In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch and water together, then pour the mixture into the raspberries, whisking it in as you do. Continue mixing and simmer for about 1 minute, or until the raspberry mixture has thickened.

Place a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl and pour the raspberry mixture into the strainer. Use a spoon or spatula to push the filling through the strainer, removing the seeds. If you don’t mind the seeds, you can skip this step.

Cover with wax or parchment paper and chill completely. Once chilled, I like to transfer the filling to a piping bag, reserving 1 1/2 Tbsp for the icing.

While this chills, make the dough and cheesecake filling.

Dough Ingredients

• 114 grams butter, softened (1/2 cup)
• 170 grams brown sugar (3/4 cup)
• 85 grams honey (1/4 cup)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 140 grams all-purpose white flour (1 cup)
• 280 grams whole wheat flour (2 cups)

In a stand mixer, use the paddle to cream the butter and brown sugar together.  Add the honey and mix until well-combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, then add the vanilla, mixing each addition until incorporated.

Add the salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon and mix through. Add the flours and mix on low until just combined and a ball of dough forms.  Divide the dough in half, flatten each half into disks about 1-inch thick and wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate until chilled, about one hour.

Cheesecake Filling

• 250 grams cream cheese, softened
• 60 grams icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Combine all of the filling ingredients in a mixing bowl and use a spoon to mix everything together. Try to get the mixture as smooth as possible, with no lumps. I like to transfer the filling to a piping bag, though you can use spoons to fill the hamantaschen.

Assembly:

When you’re ready to make the hamantaschen, preheat the oven to 350ºF.  Roll out one piece of dough on a well-floured work-surface, about ⅛-inch thick.  Use a 3-inch round cutter or glass to cut out circles of dough. Collect the scraps to re-roll.

Pipe or spoon approximately 1 tsp. of cheesecake filling in the center of each circle. Pipe approximately 1/4 tsp of raspberry filling in the center of the cheesecake filling. Bring 3 sides of the dough together to make a triangle over the filling. Pinch the three corners together to seal them and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

I like to bake one tray at a time on the middle racks of the oven for 8 minutes, then turn the tray and bake another 5-7 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Repeat with the rest of the dough and fillings.

Raspberry Icing

• 150 grams icing sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. raspberry filling
• 1 to 1 1/2 Tbsp water

Place all of the glaze ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well with a spoon. You want to add JUST enough water to form a firm icing. If the icing is too thin, it will run off of the hamantaschen. Transfer the icing to a piping bag and pipe lines on the completely cooled hamantaschen.

The icing will firm up a bit, but won’t completely harden, so be gentle.