Saturday, March 31, 2012

Empanadas


I've been out of town, but while I was away I did a little experimental cooking. It's always nice to have a willing guinea pig! One of the things I'd wanted to try for a long time was empanadas, but there are so many different recipes out there. Then I came across this recipe, which seemed to match everything I was looking for, especially a flaky crust that doesn't use crisco or lard. We all loved it! The only thing I did differently was to use ground turkey thighs instead of beef or veal, but the flavors are so rich you can't tell. The almonds, olives, raisins, and tomatoes in the filling blend perfectly with the meat and warming spices like cinnamon, cumin and cloves. The dough uses cream cheese, and it was tender and flaky. I ended up with twice as much filling as needed, though, so now it's in the freezer all ready to go for another day.

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8 comments:

Katty said...

I want to make these someday!

Monica said...

How cool that you are making empanadas!

There are lots of recipes because there are a lot of styles! They are a staple in our cooking, though I must say we "cheat" and use store bought pastry...

Kt said...

What are your favorite kinds Monica?

Monica said...

Well, ham and cheese fort eh ease of preparing (in the most basic version, just roll a couple of slices of ham around a chunk of melty cheese!) And because everyone in the house eats them...

Some other cheesy favorites are: Onion and cheese. Bacon, cheese and dried plums. Blue cheese and nuts. I think I have a recipe for the first one. (they are also the typical take away dish, so many I just know are great at a certain place...)

And of course, meat. Picadillo, or knife cut. Knife cut is typical of a certain region (Salta), with a hot, liquid sauce. But those are out of the ordinary for me. Of the not-so-special, I like meat picadillo with olives, raisins, cumin (and onion, red peppers, and a couple other basics). I had never read of adding cinnamon like you did, but I will give it a try someday!

Kt said...

Wow, those all sound so good! I was also thinking of some kind of black bean and cheese combination for the vegetarians. Maybe broccoli or something, too.

Monica said...

A classic vegetarian one here is "Humita" - a corn mix. A simpler variant is corn with bechamel sauce.

I also love one I have only seen a couple of times, with eggplant and tomato and red pepper.

oh, and "caprese" - tomato, basil and mozzarella :D

I could talk about empanadas all day... your next step will be to learn how to do the "repulgue", I think... (wink)

Anonymous said...

Boy, these sound delicious! I like your turkey sub. as well. Must try.

-ChristinaMason (culinspiration)

Kt said...

They're *really* good Christina! I def. recommend them. :)