Making the rounds for Purim

As every year, bakeries around the country offer both traditional and novel varieties of hamantaschen. Here are 8 we sampled.

By NORA BERLIN
Making the rounds for Purim (photo credit: Dan Peretz)
Making the rounds for Purim
(photo credit: Dan Peretz)
1 SHEMO A rich collection that includes sugar-free cookies, a savory selection and yeast hamantaschen. Other traditional holiday delicacies on offer include ma’amul (date-filled cookies); Turkish delight-filled cookies. The special ones are with marzipan filling and brandy-meringue. From the savory collection, we loved the pesto cheese filling.
Kosher. NIS 32 – 39 for 350 gr. of sweet and sugar-free cookies, and NIS 7 for 100 gr. savory or yeast pastry ones. For more information about the selection, the recipes and a branch near you, visit www.shemo.co.il.
2 ROLADIN Interesting fillings such as winesoaked prunes with silan and almond cream are among the best in this year's selection. Other options include halva with chocolate and excellent traditional poppy seed ones.
Kosher. NIS 9.90 for 100 gr. To find a branch near you, call (09) 899-9927 or go to www.roladin.co.il.3 BISCOTTI
Rich butter pastry stuffed with classic and new fillings such as poppy citrus, nougat and chocolate and fantastic tehina and pistachios.
Kosher. 67 Hayarkon Bnei Brak. Festive 300 gr. boxes are sold at NIS 35. Deliveries are made to all parts of the country. Call (03) 570-4015/8.
4 METUKA
Turning to the traditional, the chain offers variations of the traditional poppy seed fillings, including combinations of poppy and chocolate, cherries or apples. We liked best the ones made from poppy seed pastry and the kids’ chocolate with M&M’s. There is also a sugar-free selection.Kosher. NIS 32 for 20. NIS 59 for 36. Call 1-700-723-723.5 TATTI
The rich egg-free cream and butter pastry cookies are filled with classic and new variations, such as nut and spices, marzipan and orange and sweet cheese. We couldn’t decide which was best – they’re all good.Not kosher. NIS 11 for 100 gr. 3 Avraham Giron St. Yahud, (03) 539-2500. 53 Derech Hashalom St., Givatayim.
6 LEHEM YAYIN
This boutique bakery offers lovely looking packages of varied hamantaschen, including classic poppy seed, chocolate, date and halva, as well as a selection of sugar-free ones.
Not kosher. NIS 27 for 225 gr. 4 Derech Hahoresh, Yahud, (03) 632-1793.
7 DALLAL THE BAKERY
Butter pastry filled with great combinations of poppy seed and chocolate, pistachio and cherry (our favorite) or almond cream and date.Not kosher. NIS 3 for one. NIS 36 for 14. 7 Kol Israel Haverim, Neveh Tzedek, (03) 510-9292.
8 LEHEM EREZ
The renewed chain of café-restaurant- bakeries, famous for their excellent breads, offer rich butter-andcream pastry with quality fillings such as halva, dates and poppy seed.
Not kosher. NIS 35 for packages of 360 gr. www.lehemerez.co.il.