I know what you’re really here for is the recipe. But like any good food blog, I have to talk about the experience a little bit first!
Food is definitely my love language. My favorite way to share any special occasion (especially culturally 
significant ones) is to make a delicious meal or snack or dessert…or all 3! Thankfully, my wife (they/she) loves to eat and cook with me. We have a lot of fun in the kitchen, telling stories of our childhood and our family get togethers, discussing recipes and mixing flavors. They are Italian and Lebanese, and I’m 100% Ashkenazi Jewish! We share a lot of similar interests in Mediterranean food, but there have also been many meals we’ve shared that have been brand new to the other person…and not always well received (read gefilte fish and kibbeh). Overall, the sharing of our cultural meal traditions has brought us closer as a couple and a family.
Last summer, we found the perfect opportunity to blend two of our favorite things; Dessert and Purim! Purim has been my favorite holiday for as long as I can remember. My Hebrew name is Esther and my birthday is early in March, so it was always a big deal holiday growing up. My wife’s family has always made traditional desserts during big holidays, and cannolis are one of their absolute favorite foods. Enter a random stumbling upon a cannoli Hamantaschen recipe blog and we were both starry eyed!! We decided to tuck the recipe away and save it for Purim. And well….here we are!
I have to say, of all the shared cooking and baking experiences we’ve had, this was definitely the most fun.
We turned on the soundtrack to the Broadway show Waitress, cleared off the counter tops, and got to work! There was lots of singing, reminiscing of childhood, and a few handfuls of chocolate chips! In the end, we had a delicious shared treat that reminded us both of our grandmothers and tied together two important traditions.
I hope you’ll make these delicious cannoli hamantaschen for your Purim celebration. They’re even more 
fun if you make them with someone you love!
The original recipe can be found at https://www.myjewishlearning.com/the-nosher/cannoli-hamantaschen/
Ingredients
Cannoli Filling:
¼ cup ricotta cheese
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
½ tsp cinnamon
½ cup mini chocolate chips
Hamantaschen Dough:
1 stick (4 ounces or 1/2 cup) unsalted butter or margarine, room temperature
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
½ cup sugar
½ cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
½ tsp salt
1 egg white beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for sealing the hamantaschen
½ cup chocolate chips, for drizzling
confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Directions
Make the cannoli filling: In the bowl of a mixer, beat all ingredients except the chocolate chips till light and fluffy. Fold in the chocolate chips and refrigerate, covered, till needed.
Then, make the dough: Beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar till light and fluffy; scrape down the
sides. Add the milk and vanilla and beat till incorporated. Scrape down the sides. Add the flour and salt and beat again. Divide the dough into two pieces and place each between two sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap. Roll each to a ¼” thickness, stack the doughs on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least one hour (or up to three days).
Pre-heat oven to 375.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with one dough at a time, place on your prepared baking sheet and cut out circles using a drinking glass or cookie cutter (I used a 2 1/2” cutter). Gather trimmings, re-roll and cut.
Brush the edges of the circles with a bit of the beaten egg white and place ½ teaspoon of cannoli filling in the center. Fold the dough into a triangle shape and pinch the corners and edges firmly together. Brush the dough with some more of the egg white.
Bake hamantaschen till golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. When cooled, place on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
Last, melt the ½ cup of chocolate chips in the top half of a double boiler set over barely simmering water. Cool slightly and transfer to a disposable pastry or ziploc bag. Snip a small opening in the corner and drizzle the chocolate over the hamantaschen. Refrigerate till set. Dust with confectioners’ sugar just before serving.
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