Jews tend to have strong opinions when it comes to hamantaschen filling. Is poppyseed weird, or is it the only authentic kind of filling out there? Is even something as popular as chocolate hamantaschen a complete abomination before God? If that’s true, after this cookie-butter filling experiment, I’m more than doomed.

My mother, who used to be a professional baker, makes only three flavors of hamantashen: poppyseed, cherry, and “pinecot” (her mother’s special pineapple apricot jam recipe). Only she and one of my siblings like the poppyseed kind; all too aware that we were not fully respecting our heritage, the rest of us opted for the fruit flavors.

I have a distinct memory of making and eating peanut butter chocolate chip hamantaschen at my Jewish preschool, and always wished my mother would make that. She never obliged. Or maybe I never even asked. That was one Jewish food battle I was sure to lose. Even as a young child, I think I knew I should feel guilty about the fact that I liked peanut butter chocolate chip hamantaschen more than prune or poppyseed. A shande.

But now that I am an adult with my own kitchen, I can make any kind of hamantashen that I want. I didn’t want to go out of my way to buy fillings, though, so I decided to make do with what I already had: some raspberry jam that was too sweet for the purpose for which I bought it (adding to Greek yogurt), and… what was that in the pantry?

Thus it is with a strange mix of guilt and triumphant defiance that I present to you: Cookies and Creme Cookie Butter Hamantaschen.

If you like Oreos, you must try this cookie butter, which tastes like the delicious sandwich cookie but in creamy form sort of the consistency of Nutella, plus crunchy cookie crumb bits. It’s sickeningly delicious. I have extolled its virtues to many a slightly horrified friend, forced my boyfriend to eat it on pancakes, and tried and failed to steer clear of its siren call during many trips to the basement of the Upper West Side Trader Joe’s.

The thing with Cookies and Creme Cookie Butter, though, is that there’s no real good way to eat it besides with a spoon, straight out of the jar, which tends to come with a heaping side of self-loathing. Its advertising even seems to acknowledge that it’s delicious but has no real use, offering what feels like half-hearted serving suggestions and then relenting: “Spread on pancakes or waffles. Serve on ice cream. Dip pretzels. Or eat right out of the jar. What don’t you do with something this delicious?”

The best “use” I’ve discovered for the tasty treat is spreading it on Oreos to make a double Oreo sandwich. But given that I want to live past the ripe old age of twenty-three, I don’t plan to make a habit of that, and I had just a couple spoonfuls of a jar left. So what did I do?

I decided to use it as a hamantaschen filling. Here is the verdict:

It held together better than the hamantaschen filled with jam, which tends to ooze a bit if you don’t thicken it with cornstarch, which I did not have on hand. I wasn’t sure what would happen to the gooey consistency of the cookie butter upon baking, but it pretty much stayed the same. The crunchy chocolate cookie bits burned a little bit, but it still tasted good. Overall, 10/10 would recommend if you enjoy Oreos, have a Trader Joe’s nearby, and are okay with making some of your ancestors roll over in their graves.

I’m sorry, Mom. I’m sorry, HaShem. But it was pretty tasty.

Miranda Cooper is an editorial intern at Tablet. Follow her on Twitter here.

Photos by Miranda Cooper

The post Cookie-Filled Hamantaschen appeared first on Jewcy.

Purim is upon us, and as with any Jewish holiday these days, that means viral videos. This year’s bunch has everything: stars, snacks, and the return of the foul-mouthed Bubala Please guys. Also a lot of old-timey Jewish background music.

Here are the poppy seed season’s most noteworthy videos:

The Family-Friendly: Maya Rudolph stopped by the set of Shalom Sesame with a riddle—what has three corners, three sides, and a sweet middle?

As Cookie Monster eloquently puts it, “Hamentaschen is one of me favorite cookies! (Om nom nom.)”

The Master Class: Joan Nathan shows you how to make the ‘ultimate hamentaschen‘ in a Food 52 and Tablet collaboration.

Feeling inspired? Try her recipe.

The Delightfully Festive: In what feels like a Woody Allen movie, the Aish Center set up a booth outside of Zabar’s and traded hamentaschen for jokes.

The highlight is probably the one about Levi moving to Israel and getting stuck at customs with five sets of dentures.

The Hamentaschen How-To: Chavie Lieber and Beryl Shereshewsky bring some DIY flair—and dancing hamentaschen—to JTA’s easy-to-follow video recipe.

The bright-colored bowls are, sadly, sold separately.

The very, very NSFW: Bubala Please is back with another bizarre rap, this time about “homies noshing hamentaschen.” Here’s hoping the word ‘Jewgina’ doesn’t catch on.

Which is your favorite?

Previously: The Top Five Jewish Viral Videos of the Year

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The post The Top Five Purim Videos of 2013 appeared first on Jewcy.