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Monday, April 20, 2009

Baked Empanada


Empanadas are generally deep-fried. I still love those deep-fried versions, but this time around I opted for a slightly healthier way of making them. Hence, comes my friend, the oven.

It'll still has that crisp crust with a touch of chewyness and without the oil. Very delish and goes well with a salad.


Empanada Dough

2 c Cake Flour
2 Large Eggs
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 c Butter or margarine (softened and cut into pieces)

Combine all ingredients together until its one large mass. You can mix these ingredients together in the food processor to make it go faster.

If mixing my hand, put the flour in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add all the ingredients and mix until it almost forms into a dough blob.

Knead the dough a few times, form into a ball and wrap it tight in saran wrap. Chill in the fridge for at least 30min.



Filling:


1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 lb ground chicken
1 garlic clove (minced)
1/2 medium onion (small diced)
Salt & Pepper to season

Optional:
Sun-dried tomatoes
potatoes
raisins


In a skillet, heat some oil. When the oil is hot, add in the garlic and onions. Cook the onion until translucent. Then add the ground pork and chicken and any of the optional ingredients.



Putting it all together:


Preheat oven 375˚F

Have an egg wash on hand (1 egg beaten with 2 Tbsp of water) for sealing the dough a coating before baking.

Remove the dough from the fridge. Unwrap the dough and place on a flat well-floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough - 1/8" thick (like a pie crust) Cut out the circles using a cookie cutter or some other round item. This will make roughly 12 rounds. You'll want them around 4 inches in diameter.

Place a small amount of filling on one side. Brush some of the egg wash on the edges of the unused side, then fold over into a half-moon shape. Crimp the edges to your desired crimp "design" and place on a lightly greased baking sheet, if not using a silpat. Brush some of the egg wash over the top of each empanada.

Bake these for roughly 25 min or until the the crust has a goldben brown color.


Note: Keep in mind that dough has the tendency to dry out, so place a damp cloth or paper towel over the finished pieces and unused dough to keep them moist.


29 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love baked empanadas. It really brings out the pastry texture and reminds me I'm eating a hand pie - not just some glorious fried taco. Nice basic recipe here.

vanillasugarblog said...

no kidding cake flour?
and it came out chewy & slightly crisp? wow.
I am going to print this one out....
thanks Ms. J!

The Duo Dishes said...

Nothing wrong with baking them. You're doing our waistlines a favor!

Christo Gonzales said...

nicely done - the filling looks excellent!

Anonymous said...

I never thought about baking empanadas and I grew up eating them. Thanks for the new spin!

Eric

Jenn said...

haleysuzanna: Thanks.

Dawn: Yup. Amazing how it can be used for more than just cake. =)

Duo Dishes: I'm doing my waistline a big favor. LOL.

doggy: It was indeed excellent!

Eric: It still tastes like the old fashioned kind, but slightly healthier.

Diana said...

This sounds really great -- I love that you baked them to make them a bit healthier. I'm always trying to health up traditionally unhealthy recipes as well. Will definitely have to give this a try!

Alta said...

I saw that you made baked empanadas too! We DO think alike! How funny. They look yummy. I do like the raisins idea. A little sweetness adds a lot. Great recipe!

Patty said...

Oh - yum! I like the deep fried empanadas too, but it seems like they go straight to my rear end! Baked is definitely healthier and still tastes fabulous! Yummy!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a great idea to bake the empanadas and they look scrumptious!

Jen @ MyKitchenAddiction.com said...

Yum - these look wonderful! I love that they are baked instead of fried.

Jenn said...

Diana: Thanks. I like trying to make the traditional fatty dishes seems a little bit healthy. Make me fee good inside. =)

Alta: The raisins give a little counter balance from all the saltiness of the meat.

McTatty: Baked is the new fried!

5 Star Foodie: Thanks.

Jen: Thanks very much.

Reeni said...

Empanandas rock! The pastry looks wonderful-and baking them is a great idea. For our waistlines and our kitchens-frying can be messy.

Dewi said...

Delicious Jenn, I love empanada and haven't mad this for such a long time. You just give me an idea.
Cheers,
elra

Jenn said...

Reeni: no wants a grease-splattered kitchen. lol.

Elra: Anytime. ;-P

Anonymous said...

Interestingly enough, the Missus is also experimenting oven over deep-frying!
Good idea!
Robert-Gilles

Jenn said...

Robert: Thanks. I find the oven a very useful kitchen tool and not for just baking cakes and bread.

Anonymous said...

looks very amazing! it looks all golden and toasted, I can't believe it's not deep-fried. love it!

Debbie said...

Sounds delicious. I have only had them fried but these sound wonderful!

Pam said...

I love baking instead of frying - your empanadas look tasty.

Heidi said...

These sound great!

Jenn said...

burpandslurp: Thanks!

Debbie: I used to have them fried all the time, too.

Pam: Thanks. Give it a try.

Heidi: ;-)

Alice said...

I love empanadas.. this recipe is really nice because its so simple and no complicated fillings. Great job!

Sophie said...

These sound delicious, the savory filling sounds amazing. I tend to prefer baked over fried because you can taste the yummy filling more.

Jenn said...

Alice: Keeping it simple is always the best.

Sophie: Breads are a temptation for me whenever I go to farmers markets.

Tangled Noodle said...

Great! Thanks for the dough recipe - I've been using puff pastry dough but I fuss about the calories. I usually bake mine, too, but I'd love to say that I make it completely from scratch, like these!

Jenn said...

Tangled Noodle: There's you go. No worries about the calories now. =)

Zeee said...

Sarap!! My MIL always makes empanada...hubby and I tried making them ourselves and it turned out okay... We used regular flour, though..

Jenn said...

Z'riz: Try it with the cake flour. You'll see a different in texture.

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