Happy Purim!

OK, this is definitely NOT a stamping entry, but if you want to see a thing of beauty, look here!

Purim is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the miraculous vanquishing of an enemy’s plot to annihilate all the Jews -- through the strength of faith. It is a happy, joyous celebration that is often characterized by parties, parades, costumes and noise-makers. In fact, it is mandated that this holiday be celebrated with “extreme joy.”

One of the traditional foods of this holiday is Hamantashen, a filled cookie which mimics the shape of the three-cornered hat worn by the vanquished enemy, Haman.

This was my first time making these yummy treats. A recipe came across my desk at work last week (one of the benefits of working for a Jewish organization) that uses a box of yellow cake mix as the basis for the dough recipe. Too easy to pass up, since I had everything in the house already! OK, I had to go out and buy a jar of preserves to fill them with, but everything else was in the house. I used apricot preserves for these. I must say, they taste as good as they look!

So in the spirit of Purim, go do something joyful; dance around, sing a silly song. Eat a cookie!