I was looking around for an easy empanada recipe awhile ago with a preference toward the baked rather than the fried variety.
FoodMuse found a recipe that called for a filling of chorizo and pancetta with onions and bell peppers. Sounded good. But the wrapper part called for a leavened dough. I found that a bit odd. Some googling later and I was able to easily find a simpler wrapper recipe that is shown below.
I fully intend on trying the leavened version but for now, this one suits me just fine.
Empanadas
Filling
I used a simple onion, bell pepper, chorizo and cappicola blend. I know, chorizo and cappicola? WTF? The original recipe I had called for pancetta but there wasn't any at my local market so I subbed cappicola. It worked just fine. Keep in mind, the genesis of Empanadas is peasant food. Take the leftovers, put them in some dough and let it rip. Get as creative as you like with the filling. That's my only recommendation. I sort of followed a recipe but I suggest you get freaky.
Dough
3 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup lard or vegetable shortening
2 T butter
2 cups water
1 t salt
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Dissolve the salt in hot water and let your salted water mixture cool to room temperature. Then melt your lard/vegetable shortening and butter in a separate pan. Place flour in a medium-sized bowl, then slowly add the melted lard/butter and mix flour with fork to create little balls. Then add a little bit of salted water as you mix the flour with your hand. (Don’t use all the water, just enough to create a dough that’s kind of like playdough.) Adjust with more water or more flour as you continue to knead the dough with your hand, creating a dough mixture that you can mold. Continue kneading until you get the right texture (don’t knead too much though.) When you’re happy with the texture, cover your dough in the bowl and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
When you’re ready to make your empanadas, start by creating the skin. Remove dough from the refrigerator and pinch balls a bit smaller than a golf ball. (The size depends on how big you want your empanadas.) After you have a tray of mini dough balls, flatten each with a rolling pin to create small tiny circles, like a mini pizza. The skin should be at least 1/8-inch thick or less.
Place a spoonful of filling on one side of the circle skin, then fold over and pat down the edges. Decorate the edges by doing the traditional Argentine rope edges by starting on one end and turning over a bit, and then folding over and over along the edges to create a rope look. Or you can do the simple method of pushing down the teeth of a fork along the edge. Or better yet, create your own pattern or "stamp".
Some recipes call for using baking sheets. That's fine if you can. I just greased a non-stick baking sheet and it worked fine. Create an egg wash by mixing one raw egg with a bit of water. Paint the egg wash on top of every empanada. (Optional: crack a bit of fresh sea salt on top of each empanada.) Place in oven and bake until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.
3 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup lard or vegetable shortening
2 T butter
2 cups water
1 t salt
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Dissolve the salt in hot water and let your salted water mixture cool to room temperature. Then melt your lard/vegetable shortening and butter in a separate pan. Place flour in a medium-sized bowl, then slowly add the melted lard/butter and mix flour with fork to create little balls. Then add a little bit of salted water as you mix the flour with your hand. (Don’t use all the water, just enough to create a dough that’s kind of like playdough.) Adjust with more water or more flour as you continue to knead the dough with your hand, creating a dough mixture that you can mold. Continue kneading until you get the right texture (don’t knead too much though.) When you’re happy with the texture, cover your dough in the bowl and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
When you’re ready to make your empanadas, start by creating the skin. Remove dough from the refrigerator and pinch balls a bit smaller than a golf ball. (The size depends on how big you want your empanadas.) After you have a tray of mini dough balls, flatten each with a rolling pin to create small tiny circles, like a mini pizza. The skin should be at least 1/8-inch thick or less.
Place a spoonful of filling on one side of the circle skin, then fold over and pat down the edges. Decorate the edges by doing the traditional Argentine rope edges by starting on one end and turning over a bit, and then folding over and over along the edges to create a rope look. Or you can do the simple method of pushing down the teeth of a fork along the edge. Or better yet, create your own pattern or "stamp".
Some recipes call for using baking sheets. That's fine if you can. I just greased a non-stick baking sheet and it worked fine. Create an egg wash by mixing one raw egg with a bit of water. Paint the egg wash on top of every empanada. (Optional: crack a bit of fresh sea salt on top of each empanada.) Place in oven and bake until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.
The pics are crappy. I don't have any after pics because I forgot. Either that or I had too much happy hour. Not sure.
Have fun and eat well.
