Recipe - Empanadas (Tht)

DOUGH
2 cup Flour
One half cup Lard
2 One half tablespoon Unsalted butter
One half teaspoon Sea salt
About One half cup iced water

FILLING
1 pound Lean ground beef
1 md Onion,, chopped
2 Cloves garlic,, chopped
1/3 cup Toasted almonds, coarsely
chopped
1/3 cup Dark raisins
8 Italian Roma tomatoes
24 Serrano chiles
2 Limes, Juice of
1 One half teaspoon Sea salt
1 teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon Ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon Cinnamon
Sea salt,, to taste
Freshly ground black
pepper,, to taste

In a large bowl, combine the flour with the lard, butter, and salt. Mix
lightly with your fingertips until the dough forms grapesized pieces. You
should still be able to see streaks of fat. Stir in the water. Lightly
knead, handling the dough as little as possible, until the dough forms a
ball. Add a little more water if needed. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour,
then remove and let it return to room temperature, about 1 hour, before
rolling. The dough can be frozen for as long as a week. Pinch off about
half the dough. Roll out, on a floured surface, to a thickness of 1/8inch.
Cut out 3inch circles. Then, gather the scraps, add to the rest of the
dough, and roll out another batch of circles. Repeat, with the rest of the
scraps. This should be enough dough for about 24 empanadas.

In a large heavy skillet, over a mediumhigh heat, saute the ground beef
until the meat is browned, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain off the excess fat.
Add the onion and saute 2 minutes. Then add the garlic, almonds, and
raisins, and saute 1 minute. Place the tomatoes, chiles, lime juice, salt,
and pepper in a blender and puree until smooth. Add the puree, cumin,
cinnamon and salt and pepper to the skillet and cook for about 5 minutes to
get rid of any excess liquid. Cool. Place a spoonful of filling in the
center of each circle of pastry. Fold over the pastry and seal the edges.
Let the empanadas rest in the refrigerator One half hour or freeze immediately.
(Bake the frozen empanadas without defrosting.) Empanadas may be glazed (1
egg and 2 tablespoons milk, well beaten) and baked until golden in a 400
degree oven, for about 15 minutes. Or they may be deepfried in oil at 375
degrees until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes a side. (If you deepfry them,
make sure the edges are well sealed so the filling won't leak.)

Yield: about 24 empanadas
Posted to MCRecipe Digest V1 #331

Recipe by: TOO HOT TAMALES SHOW #TH6274

From: Meg Antczak meginny@frontiernet.net

Date: Fri, 6 Dec 1996 08:08:48 0500