Beef Empanadas

I asked my husband the other day whether he packed our mini me the empanadas I made him for a snack. He turns to me and says, No. Empanadas are not a snack. I'm sure his response was partially fueled by the fact that I used the larger empanada disc when I made them. Of course, for some reason his retort just seemed ridiculous to me. Not a snack? I only eat these as appetizers or snacks. So, I had to consult some of my friends. The responses were half and half.

Then I started thinking about it.  I guess technically you can make an empanada a complete meal. Add some vegetables to your meat mixture. Serve it with a salad or on a bed of lettuce. Or some maduros? Sweet plantains are a great addition to any cuban dish.

It doesn't take much for me to want empanadas. Who doesn't like a hand held meat pocket? Luckily, I made picadillo earlier this week, so I decided to use the picadillo mixture to stuff the empanadas. If you know you are planning on using picadillo to fill the empanada dough, you should use olives stuffed with pimentos. I would also suggest slicing the olives. That is if you even decide to put olives in your empanadas.

Despite our disagreement, when I set up the labels for this post I put it under both appetizer and dinner. See compromise... isn't it grand.

Beef Empanadas
Makes 10

Ingredients
1 package La Fey dough for pastries (thawed)
2 1/2 cups of picadillo
1/4 quart of vegetable oil
1egg (if baking)

Empanada Directions

Place un-opened empanada dough and picadillo on counter.

Once you've opened the empanada dough, place a wet paper towel over the dough you are not using.

Remove one disc of dough and in the center place 1/4 cup of picadillo.

Lightly wet the edges of the dough.

Fold the dough in half and gently press the edge of the dough together with a fork.

Repeat the above for all 10 discs of dough.

Frying Directions
In a cast iron frying pan, heat of oil to 375 degrees.

Fry empanadas two at a time (over crowding the pan will decrease the heat of your oil).

Fry until each side is golden brown. Approximately 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

Place fried empanadas on a baking sheet covered with paper towels to allow excess oil to drain.

Baking Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spray baking sheet with oil.

Gently brush completed empanadas with beaten egg and bake for 12 to 14 minutes.

Flip empanada over after 8 to 10 minutes.

Continue baking until empanadas have gently browned.

Remove from oven
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I love hot sauce on my empanadas, but that's probably because I eat it like an appetizer. Depending on whether you considering this dish an appetizer or dinner will dictate how you eat your empanadas.  This dish is also a great way to make use of leftovers. Whether that be picadillo or rotisserie chicken. Add some tomatoes or potatoes and put it in a pocket. Whatever way you make it, I hope you enjoy.