On the holiday of Purim, it is customary to eat foods that are triangular shaped – representative of the hat the villian of the holiday, the evil Haman, was said to wear.
It’s really frustrating for a GFE (Gluten Free Eater) to watch everyone around eating triangular Purim delicacies and not be able to participate.
Super frustrating.
In the past I’ve made gluten free hamentashen, triangular shaped cookies or pastries with a sweet filling, by substituting gluten free one-to-one flour for wheat flour…with good results.
The problem is that some of us are on low carb diets and although we’d love to “nosh” on all the sweet gluten free, carb laden hamentashen, they are not a viable option.
I wanted to come up with a grain free/low carb triangular pastry, filled with some sort of meat filling where different flavorful ingredients could be added to the pastry or filling. The idea was to take a single recipe and give it lots of options and variety.
The pastries also had to taste good enough that everyone at the table would love them.
Challenge accepted.
I started out by searching the web for an almond based pasta dough. I initially was planning on tri-colored triangle ravioli. I found a recipe by gnom-gnom.com for Grain Free Keto Pasta. I was pretty psyched. I wanted to boil them, but the original author said they must be fried. I also modified the recipe according to better fit my vision of the final product.
Next, the filling.
I decided to use ground white turkey as the base. Part of the reason was that turkey is pretty flavorful, white turkey is healthier, and Trader Joe’s had it in stock when I went shopping for the filling.
I wanted the filling to burst with flavor. For the first batch I was a little tentative with the seasoning, erring on the side of caution.
They were good, but not great. The flavors didn’t burst the way I wanted them to, and they needed something that would bring the taste to the next level. After some pondering, I adjusted the ingredients, and the result was a rousing success.
Short on time???
The dough, however, did not come out like pasta dough at all. It was more pastry like. Kind of like empanadas but made with almond and coconut flour. I was also worried that they would have a “coconut flavor” because of the added coconut flour. On the plus side that didn’t happen.
They also weren’t pretty enough.
First batch – Savory Tri-Colored Triangle Pastries
I believe that in most cases, if you’re going to go through the effort of “patchkying” with a “fancy” recipe the result should look like you spent a lot of time preparing it.
I went on Amazon and searched for a ravioli/empanada/dumpling press. I have the presses in a half circle shape, but given that I was making them for Purim, they had to be triangular. I found two molds/presses to try.
The first was a ravioli sheet. You roll the dough thinly, place it over the mold, fill in the little holes, place another thin sheet of dough over the filling, press down and remove the little triangle raviolis.
Ha Ha! Fooled you! It looks like its going to work but then…
Epic fail.
The raviolis didn’t come out of the press. I had to pry them out and kind of smush them into triangles with no thought for filling. It was a mini triangle pastry with the filling mixed in not separate.
Meh.
Then I tried the stainless triangle press. Perfect!!!
Put the dough in the press…
It really worked!
I was able to achieve exactly the results I was looking for. If I didn’t overfill the pastries, every single one of them came out perfectly.
Perfect!
I sautéed some Cremini mushrooms with green onions as a topping for the pastries. YUM!
We also used a sriracha honey dipping sauce for them, and it took them to a whole other level.
I did really like the turmeric and spinach dough versions too.
Now the problem of naming them.
Ok – I’ll tell you a story…
My “Machatanim” (a.k.a. my Dear Daughter-In-Law’s parents) are in town for the birth of our new grandson!!! BH, KIH!!
Yes – I buried the lead!
Mazel Tov!!!
We are super blessed with a new and completely adorable new grandson who won’t be named until this Sunday at his Bris.
Thank G-d, ten fingers and toes and healthy. Thank G-d.
Thank you G-d! (Photo courtesy loving Aunt Adina Matten)
Anyway, my wonderful Machatanim are from Venezuela and are fortunately staying at my Dear Son and Dear DIL’s house to welcome and help with the new baby.
When we went to lunch at my Dear Son and Dear DIL’s house this past Shabbat, we were greeted by our Machatanim with the news that Dear DIL was in labor and at the hospital!
Wahoo!!!
Back to our originally scheduled program…
I had sent a container with the still unnamed triangle pastries and sautéed mushrooms for lunch and was extremely interested in hearing what my Machatanim thought of them. I also wondered if they might have a Spanish name for them. Were they actually Empanadas? Another pastry? Ultimately, according to my Venezuelan experts, although they looked and tasted like Empanadas, they were not Empanadas as they were made with almond and coconut flour rather than corn flour.
Sigh.
WHAT ARE THEY???
Are they pastries? Empanadas? Turnovers? Dumplings?
WHAT???
So…I’m going to call them Savory Tri-Color Triangle Pastries and call it a day. If you have a better name let me know and maybe I’ll change it.
Just know that these are perfect for your Purim Seudah and will make everyone happy when they eliminate Haman’s (delicious) triangular hats – with dipping sauce!
With mushrooms and green onions…
Savory Tri-Color Triangle Pastries (Gluten Free)
- Yield: 18 1x
Description
These grain and gluten free triangle pastries are bursting with flavor. Add sautéed mushrooms and a zesty dipping sauce and they are the perfect addition to your Purim Seudah!
Ingredients
For the Pastry Dough
- 2 cups almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 4 teaspoons xanthan gum
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup water
- Oil for frying (I prefer peanut or avocado)
- Baking sheet lined with paper towels
For the dough add-ins
- 1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric or
- 1 tablespoon ground dried spinach
For the Filling
- 2 tablespoons garlic oil or 1 large clove garlic and 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 pound ground white turkey
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon marjoram
- 1/4 teaspoon ground mustard powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- dash crushed red pepper
- 1 cup green onions, sliced
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1 large egg
For the Sautéed Mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon garlic oil
- 1 pound Cremini Mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1 cup sliced green onions
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce (gluten free)
Instructions
For the Pastry Dough
- In a large bowl combine the almond flour, coconut flour, xanthan gum and kosher salt.
- Knead in the eggs and water until completely combined.
- Divide the dough into three pieces.
- Knead in the turmeric to one dough piece and the spinach into the second dough piece. Set aside.
For the Filling
- Heat the garlic oil in a large skillet or wok.
- Add the ground white turkey, cumin, marjoram, mustard, black pepper and kosher salt. Sauté until the turkey is browned, breaking the clumps up into small pieces.
- Stir in the crushed red pepper, green onions. Allow the mixture to cool.
- Stir in the almond flour and egg.
To Finish
- Divide each piece of dough into two pieces. Roll a piece of dough very thinly, approximately 2mm. Cut the dough into squares. Place a square of dough onto the dough press. Spoon a small amount of the filling onto the dough.
- Close the press tightly, forming a triangle pastry. Set aside.
- Repeat with the remaining dough.
- In a large skillet or Dutch oven, heat around 1-inch of oil. Place several raw pastry squares in the oil. Fry until browned on both sides. Transfer to prepared baking sheet.
- Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
- Serve with the Sautéed Mushrooms or your favorite dipping sauce.
For the Sautéed Mushrooms
- Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the mushrooms and sauté until soft. Add the green onions and soy sauce and sauté for another minute.
- Serve with the Savory Tri-Colored Pastries.
Notes
- You can make all the pastries one color if you like.
- I make my own dried spinach by washing fresh spinach, then dehydrating it and crunching into a powder. You can find it online as well if you can’t make your own.
- If you don’t have a pastry triangle press, simply take a square of dough, fold it over to make a triangle, then seal the dough pressing down with the tines of a fork.
Smile for a close up!
Here are some more Purim recipes!
I’m sure you’re looking for more fabulous recipes! Make sure to check out Shabbos Under Pressure, Cooking with Pressure = Pressure Free Cooking on Amazon!!
I know this may freak you out, but it’s not too early to start thinking about Passover. I put together a guide for Shabbos Under Pressure to help you prepare for the holiday!
Using an electric pressure cooker to help get your Passover meals ready is super time saving. I use mine to make my chicken soup, chicken, roasts, and much more. There are tons of hearty, warm, savory and sweet recipes. Make sure to get yours in time to plan.
Here are some affiliate links to presses that can be used to make the Savory Tri-Color Triangle Pastries:
Kuechenprofi Stainless Steel Triangle Ravioli Mold, 4.5-Inch by 4.5-Inch – This is the one I bought. I like it because it’s stainless steel and high quality.
RoseFlower Dumpling Maker and Cutter, Stainless Steel Dumpling Ravioli Skin Maker Press/Pie Mold Dough Stamp Dumpling Wrapper Dough Stamp Cutter Pastry Pie Making Tool#3
Ravioli Maker Set, FantasyDay 1 Pack Stainless Steel Pierogi Dumpling Maker Wrapper Pastry Dough Press Pie Empanada Press Mould Pastry Crimpers, Pelmeni Dumplings – Home Cooking Kitchen Accessories
A number of people, myself included are allergic to tree nuts, which include almonds and coconuts, so this recipe, while it looked interesting is absolutely verboten for me!