Baked Corn Empanaditas Food

BASIC EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Make the filling: In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, cook meat until no longer pink, breaking it up into small pieces, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add onion and jalapenos; cook until soft, 5 minutes. Stir in chili powder and tomatoes. Cook over medium until mixture has thickened, 12 to 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in cilantro. Let cool.
• Make the dough: In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Using your fingers, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Add just enough cold water so dough comes together.
• Form empanadas. If desired, freeze on a baking sheet until firm, 2 hours. Wrap tightly in plastic; freeze in plastic bags.
• To bake fresh or frozen empanadas, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Brush tops with egg wash, avoiding crimped edges. Bake until golden brown, rotating sheets halfway through, 30 to 40 minutes.

BAKED EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees.
• Cook sausage, onion, green pepper and garlic in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until sausage is browned and onion is crisply tender (5 to 6 minutes).
• Drain well.
• Stir in tomato and oregano.
• Set aside.
• Roll 1 sheet puff pastry to 12-inch square.
• Cut into 16 (3-inch) squares.
• Place 1 rounded tablespoon filling in center of each square.
• Fold opposite corners of squares together to form triangles.
• Pinch edges of pastry together; crimp with fork to seal.
• Place triangles onto lightly greased baking sheets.
• Repeat with remaining pastry sheet and filling.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

EMPANADAS ABIERTAS DE HUMITA (CREAMY CORN EMPANADAS)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease and flour a 12-cup muffin tin.
• Line the muffin cups with the 12 pastry rounds.
• Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir green onions until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Add corn, salt, pepper, and nutmeg; cook and stir until heated through, about 2 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.
• Heat 3 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat; add flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until a paste forms, about 1 minute. Slowly pour in milk, whisking constantly, and cook until a thick sauce forms and starts to bubble, 2 to 3 minutes. Add half of the Parmesan cheese and stir until smooth; remove from heat. Stir sauce into corn mixture.
• Fill pastry with corn mixture and top each with remaining Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden, about 15 minutes.

CORNMEAL EMPANADAS

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the spaghetti sauce, raisins and seasonings; simmer. , Meanwhile, for pastry, combine the flour, cornmeal and salt in a large bowl. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add ice water, a little at a time, until dough forms a ball. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. , Divide pastry into two balls; roll half out on a lightly floured surface to a 16-in. circle. Cut into four 7-1/2-in. rounds. Place 1/2 cup filling on each round. Combine egg and water; brush on pastry edges. Fold dough over to form half circles; crimp edges to seal. Repeat with other half of pastry and remaining filling. , Place on greased baking sheets; brush tops with remaining egg mixture. Bake at 400° for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve with taco sauce if desired.

CORN EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Make the dough: Put 2 cups boiling water, 4 ounces lard and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a large mixing bowl. Stir to melt lard and dissolve salt. Cool to room temperature.
• Gradually stir in flour with a wooden spoon until dough comes together. Knead for a minute or two on a floured board, until firm and smooth. Add more flour if sticky. Wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Make the filling: Melt 3 tablespoons lard in a wide heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook briskly, stirring, until softened and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add potatoes, corn, garlic, cumin and thyme. Season generously with salt and pepper and stir well. Add about 1 cup broth or water and simmer until potatoes are softened and liquid has evaporated, about 5 to 7 minutes.
• Transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add roasted peppers, ham, ricotta and cayenne and stir well. Taste and adjust seasoning for full flavor (intensity will diminish upon cooling). Stir in Gruyère and scallions. Cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Divide chilled dough into 1-ounce pieces and form into 2-inch diameter balls. Roll each piece into a 4 1/2-inch circle. Lay circles on a baking sheet lightly dusted with flour.
• Moisten outer edge of each round with water. Put about 2 tablespoons filling in the center of each round. Wrap dough around filling to form empanada, pressing edges together. Fold edge back and finish by pinching little pleats or crimping with a fork.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place empanadas on parchment-lined or oiled baking sheet, about 1 inch apart. Brush tops lightly with lard or butter and bake on top shelf of oven until golden, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve warm.

EMPANADAS WITH CORN DOUGH

Steps:

• Prepare the dough in a bowl, mixing the masa harina, salt, and warm water to form a ball, knead dough until smooth. Divide the dough into 12 balls, and flatten and slightly cover with plastic wrap. Set aside.
• Place one ball of dough between two pieces of plastic and press using a tortilla press, a heavy skillet or a dish. I know, you have seen the tortilla press, but somehow I love to use my glass dishes for this step. So, do not be afraid, use whatever you have.
• Remove the top piece of plastic and spoon some of the stuffing onto the tortilla. Leaving enough room to seal the edges.
• Using the piece of plastic fold the dough over to make a half moon shape turn over. Pinch the edges, making sure they seal to avoid any leaking of the mixture while frying. Remove the empanada from the plastic set aside on a large plate or tray and cover with a plastic wrap. Keep working with the rest of the dough making the empanadas.
• Heat the oil in a skillet over high heat. It's frying time!
• Deep fry the empanadas one or two at a time until golden brown.
• About 2 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot topped with lettuce and avocado. Eat them adding some salsa. After that, take a long walk.

BAKED CORN EMPANADITAS

Steps:

• Combine the masa harina, water and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir until smooth. The dough should be slightly sticky and form a ball when pressed together. To test, flatten a small ball of dough between your palms. If the edges crack, add water to the dough, a tablespoon at a time, until a test piece does not crack. Cover with a damp towel until ready to use.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over moderate heat. Add the onion and saute until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Ad the garlic, jalapeno, cumin, salt and pepper and saute 1 minute longer to release the aromas. Add the tomato, potatoes and corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid from the tomatoes is absorbed, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the parsley and cheese and correct the seasoning. Set aside to cool.
• Divide the dough into 24 golfball size pieces, moistening your hands with water to prevent sticking if necessary. Flatten balls to 3 inch disks. Place a heaping teaspoon of stuffing on the empanada and close by pressing the edges together with your fingers. Shape into a half moon. Repeat until all the half moons are formed. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the empanaditas on top. Brush with the glaze and prick with a fork to make steam holes. Bake for about 2530 minutes, or until golden. Remove and transfer to a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm.

VEGETARIAN EMPANADAS WITH BLACK BEANS AND CORN

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Sift the flour into a bowl. Stir in the sugar and 1 teaspoon salt.
• Blend the lard (or shortening) and butter into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter, or with two knives, until fairly well blended.
• Whisk the egg yolks with 3/4 cups water.
• Stir in the water-egg mixture, a little bit at a time, until the dough starts to come together smoothly.
• Keep kneading the dough, adding more of the water-egg mixture as needed (you may need a few tablespoons extra of water), until the dough is smooth. The dough will seem a bit shaggy until it has thoroughly chilled. Taste for salt and add more if needed.
• Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about one hour.
• Gather the ingredients.
• Pour boiling water over the golden raisins and let soak for 10 minutes, then drain. Set aside.
• Add the vegetable oil to a heavy skillet and place over medium heat. Add the chopped onions, aji paste, cumin, and garlic salt and sauté until the onions are very soft and translucent, about 5 to 8 minutes.
• Add the chopped tomatoes, the scallions, and the sugar and sauté, stirring, for about 5 minutes more, or until excess liquid has cooked away and tomatoes are beginning to stick to the pan.
• Add the black beans and sauté, until excess liquid is cooked away, about 5 minutes.
• Add the corn, raisins, and lime juice, and cook for 5 minutes more.
• Remove mixture from heat and scrape into a heatproof bowl.
• Let cool to room temperature, then stir in the cheese cubes and the cilantro. Chill mixture for 2 hours, or overnight.
• Gather the ingredients. Preheat oven to 375 F.
• Divide the dough into 20 pieces for large empanadas or about 40 pieces for small, appetizer-size empanadas.
• Roll each piece of dough into a circle about 1/4-inch thick. (Circles will be about 6 inches in diameter for the larger empanadas and about 3 1/2 inches for the smaller ones).
• Place 1 heaping tablespoon of filling in the middle of each circle of dough (1 teaspoon for small empanadas).
• Fold the dough over the filling to make a semicircle. Press the edges together firmly to seal.
• Fold the edge over itself and crimp decoratively.
• Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush the empanadas generously with the beaten egg.
• Bake for about 20 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown.
• Let cool and dust with powdered sugar.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.

CHICKEN AND CORN EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, red pepper flakes, and oregano. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Season with the salt. Cook for 1 minute. Add the red and green peppers and corn. Cook until the peppers soften and any liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes.
• To the same pan, add the chicken and wine, and season with salt. Cook until the chicken is just cooked through and almost all of the liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes. Refrigerate the filling until chilled; stir in the cheese. The filling may be prepared and refrigerated, covered, for up to 2 days.
• Fill a small bowl with cold water. Roll out the dough to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Using a 5-inch-diameter plate as a template, cut out 24 circles. Spoon about 1/4 cup chilled filling into the center of a circle, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Brush the border with cold water. Fold the dough over, stretching it slightly, to form a half-moon shape. Beginning at one end, press the edges together to seal, while trying to remove any air pockets. Press again to ensure the empanadas are well sealed. Using a fork or your fingers, crimp the edges to form a decorative edge. Repeat with the remaining circles and filling.
• Brush the empanadas with egg wash, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes (but no longer than 1 day). Once filled, the empanadas may be frozen and baked later, without defrosting, in a preheated 350°F oven for 30 to 40 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Arrange the empanadas on the baking sheets. Bake until puffed and browned and the filling is bubbling inside, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
• Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the lard and butter, and pulse until the mixture is the texture of coarse meal. With the processor running, slowly add enough water to form a firm dough. Transfer to a lightly floured work surface, and knead until the dough comes together and becomes smooth. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for 1 hour.