The Hamantaschen Five

If you’re like some of us, you are busy finding that perfect costume to wear to your Purim festivities.  But what of finding the time to bake the little triangle cookies we all love to munch on?   Thankfully, you don’t really have to worry, since there is no shortage of bakeries across the USA that sell the jam-filled delectables.  Only five of them have made our distinguished list of the Top Five Best Hamantaschen Bakers in America. 1.  Moishes, New York, NY Is it wrong to call this East Village institution the "Hamentaschen Mecca"?  If so, I’m sorry.  But seriously, I’m assuming that Moishe and his bakery might have been opened around the time of Queen Esther.  They have the palm-sized cookies, but I’d suggest skipping those, and getting a mixed pound of the little chocolate and the raspberry for thirteen bucks.  2.  Bleeding Heart Bakery, Chicago, Il. In a city that knows food, Bleeding Heart stands out as one of the best bakeries in the Second City with a mission "to use local, sustainable, organic ingredients and to make you the best damn cakes and pastries you have ever had!"   On top of that, they also make hamantaschen that carry a personal story for owner Michelle Garcia: "My mom taught me how to make them when I was really little. I was adopted by a catholic family, but my father is believed to be Jewish, so my mom was trying to teach me about my birth family, but bond with me as a mother at the same time."   Bleeding Heart makes strawberry, raspberry and apricot for $1.00 each. 3.  Diamond Bakery, Los Angeles, CA If anybody tells you that LA doesn’t know Jewish food, please feel free to tell that person they’re a schmuck, and give them directions to the Mid-City West institution, Diamond Bakery.  While the place is known for challah and rye, the secret gem of this "old world" bakery is the hamantaschen.  While they come in poppy and apricot flavors, the bakeries lovely ‘taschen slinger, Gloria, swears that the prune really are the best. 4. Arizmedndi, San Francisco, CA What can be more Jewish than a cooperative bakery named after a labor organizer?  A place like Arizmedni could only be from San Francisco, but they also have a location in Oakland, meaning that these are the people to go to when you have a bad case of the Purim munchies, and really want a $4.50 mixed bag of cherry, fig, and apricot. 5.  Lipkins, Philadelphia, PA. Philly will not take a backseat to New York in terms of food your Bubbe made, and while The Big Apple has Yonah Schimmel’s world famous knishes, I’ve been told by native Phillies that Lipkins beats the New York institutions.  One of those friends of mine also went on to say that "Lipkins has by far the best hamantaschen in the entire state." A bold claim.  Anybody from the Illadelph want to argue with that?