Empanadas

Jeff arrived in Argentina on Tuesday, so we had Empanadas! I got the recipe from my dear friend Barbara, who served in the Buenos Aires Argentina Mission. They're like homemade hot pockets--but they're good! Everybody loved them--even the next day for lunch! Since this was the first time I had made them, I used boxed rice and canned beans to make things easier. Someday I'll have to put up a homemade version of the rice, but I'll tell ya, Bush's Seasoned Black Beans were a hit. I'll be keeping some of those on hand for easy dinners.

Empanadas
Barbara Barrow

Filling:
1/2 cup shortening (I don't think so! Lard, baby. Use the lard. It's good for you!)
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 Tablespoon vinegar
1 pound ground beef
1/4 cup raisins
2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped

In a saute pan, melt the shortening (lard) and add the chopped onions and green peppers. Cook until the onions and pepper are tender (Whenever I cook onions, I do it low and slow--heat on low, usually about 15 minutes, they are translucent and wonderful, but not at all brown. Oh, and I salt and pepper them. I can't help myself.). Add the paprika, red pepper, cumin, vinegar and ground beef. Cook until the beef is brown (Now, generally when you want browned meat, you cook on a medium high heat looking for brown bits of fabulous flavor. But I just kept the heat low and let it cook completely. At this point I looked at all that fat in the pan and called Barbara to see if she drained the fat. Nope. Nope, nope, nope. And I had to remind myself of 2 Nephi 9:51, and allow myself to "delight in fatness". And I'm glad I did. Oh, and I salted and peppered the meat. I can't help myself.). Stir in raisins and hard boiled egg. For me, the raisins make these great! Be sure to add them, unless you hate raisins. I have had them with chopped green olives also, which are good it you like green olives. (I have three girlies that were much more likely to try these if I left the raisins out. Silly girlies. So I made three empanadas without raisins--marked with an "X". Then I made one with raisins to give to Barbara--marked with an "R". Then I made the rest with raisins and green olives--with random markings.)

Tapas (dough) (This dough was easy to make, easy to roll, and delicious!)
4 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup shortening (What am I going to say? Lard. That's right.)
1 1/4 cup water, as needed

I use my food processor to make this dough. Just follow instructions for a pie crust. Mix the flour and salt together, cut in the shortening (I did all this by hand using a pastry cutter.) and add water until you have a good consistency for the dough (I find it best if it's still a little crumbly. While the dough sits for thirty minutes, the flour will absorb the water more.). It will be the consistency of a pie crust. You may have to tweak the measurements a little. Chill the dough for 30 minutes. (So really you want to make this before you start the filling.)

Roll out the dough and cut into small round shells (I only did half the dough at a time. My counter was crowded.). I use a small saucer plate to cut mine out (6 inches in diameter). Fold over and press the edges together with your fingers or a fork. I always poke some holes with a fork to allow it to vent during cooking (did this with the aforementioned "X" ,"R", and "random". I also tried salt and pepper on the top of some because I like that with my pot pies. But Mat said either way was fine.). Place on a greased cookie sheet (I used parchment paper.). Brush with egg white (I used a wash of 1 whole egg and 1 tablespoon water.). Bake for 20-30 (30) minutes (until golden brown) at 350 degrees.