dubai chocolate hamantaschen

I finally jumped on the viral bandwagon with this delish Dubai chocolate hamantaschen!

better late than never?

Between travel, work and life I forgot that Purim starts this week. Not earth shattering news I know, but I do love sharing a fun twist on hamantaschen each year (search “hamantaschen” for all the things).

I decided to give myself a pass this year, when I had a lightbulb moment to create a Dubai chocolate version of hamantaschen – and here we are!

what is Dubai chocolate anyway?

If you’re a social scroller then you already know – this chocolate bar was EVERYWHERE last year. But just in case:

The Dubai chocolate bar was created by Fix Chocolatier in Dubai in 2021, and went viral in 2024 after being promoted on social media. It’s a milk chocolate bar stuffed with a filling made from toasted kataifi (shredded phyllo), pistachio cream and tahini. You literally could not avoid TikToks of people breaking the bar in half and revealing the bright green filling.

It wasn’t long before the bars landed (and immediately sold out) here, and not long after THAT before creators were sharing the (relatively easy!) recipe.

As a non-chocolate girly I was a hard pass on this – though I have often toyed with a white chocolate version. It all just seemed A LOT. But hamantaschen has just a small amount of filling, making it the perfect foray into this viral sensation!

what ingredients do you need? 

While I truly try to share recipes that require simple and simply sourced ingredients, this is not one of those times. Here’s what you’ll need: 

• butter
• granulated sugar
• light brown sugar
• egg
• vanilla extract
• flour
• unsweetened cocoa powder
• salt
• kataifi
• pistachio cream
• tahini
• white chocolate

tips for perfect-every-time hamantaschen!

I’m a STICKLER when it comes to hamantaschen – and while there are no end of tips out there I stand by these 100%:

1. Roll the dough to 1/4″ thickness – this will seem too thick but a thinner dough will not hold its shape as well.

2. Use only 1/2 teaspoon of filling per cookie – again, this will seem wrong, like, how can this possibly be enough? Here’s the thing: as the cookies bake, the filling expands and pushes out the sides of that dough you’ve so carefully pinched and shaped. The more filling, the more misshapen the finished cookie will be. If you don’t care about the look, and want more filling, you can go up to one teaspoon. But your hamantaschen will likely not be as pretty.

3. Glue those babies SHUT – an egg wash is essential to seal the sides. I always want to skip this step and always regret it when I do.

4. Freeze the hamantaschen before baking – after the egg wash “glue”, stick your tray in the freezer for at least 30 minutes (and up to overnight). This will ensure that your cookies stay intact once placed in the oven.

Let me know if you try ’em!

Dubai Chocolate Hamantaschen

sherisilver

Took that viral chocolate bar and turned it into a favorite Purim treat!

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Servings 21 cookies

Equipment

• hand mixer
• Sheet pan
• parchment paper
• cookie cutter
• pastry brush
• wire cooling rack

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

For the dough:

• 1 stick, 1/4 pound or 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• egg wash made with 1 large egg whisked with 1 tablespoon water

For the filling:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups chopped kataifi (about 3 ounces)
• 1/2 cup pistachio cream (about 4 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• 4 ounces white chocolate, chopped

Instructions

 

Make the dough:

• Beat the butter and both sugars till light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides and add the egg and vanilla; beat again. Add the flour, cocoa powder and salt. Divide the dough in half and roll each half to a 1/4″ thickness between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Refrigerate for 1 – 2 hours (or up to overnight).
• Peel off one piece of parchment paper and place the dough (still on the bottom piece of parchment) on a baking sheet. Use a glass or cookie cutter to cut out circles (I use a 2 1/2″ cookie cutter). Remove the excess dough and set aside. Repeat with the other dough, till you have 12 circles on your cookie sheet. Re-roll and continue cutting the dough (you should have about 18 – 24 cookies depending on the size of your cutter).

Make the filling:

• Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook the chopped kataifi, stirring frequently, till golden brown. Remove the pan from the heat and add the pistachio cream and tahini. Stir till completely coated.
• Place 1/2 teaspoon of the filling in the center of each circle and fold the dough into a triangle shape, pinching the corners firmly together. Brush the tops of the cookies with a little of the beaten egg and place in the freezer for 30 minutes (or up to overnight).
• Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the cookies for 10 – 12 minutes. It’s tricky to know when chocolate cookies are “done” as they are already brown, but if they smell fragrant and look almost dry they are ready (I typically bake off a single cookie first, to see how long they need). Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Melt the white chocolate in the microwave or top half of a double boiler. Transfer to a pastry or ziploc bag and snip a small opening in the corner. Drizzle over the cookies and let set before serving.

Notes

You will have leftover filling, which is not the worst thing! Keep stored, covered in the fridge, for up to 2 weeks. Search "leftover Dubai chocolate filling" online for fun suggestions on how to use it, or check out En Root Kitchen's Dubai chocolate cups and date bark! You can also simply halve the filling ingredients if you prefer.

Keywords bar cookies, chocolate, dubai chocolate, hamantaschen, kataifi, pistachios, purim, tahini

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About the author

Sheri Silver

Sheri Silver is a New York-based food photographer and recipe developer who has been cooking and baking for over 30 years. She works with brands, authors and restaurants to create recipes that are as beautiful as they are foolproof - and every recipe on this blog has been made, tweaked and eaten in her own kitchen.

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