Pastel Israeli Spiced Meat Pie Food

PASTEL (ISRAELI SPICED MEAT PIE)

Steps:

• Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and carrots and sauté until vegetables have softened, but not browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add beef, cinnamon, salt and pepper, stirring to combine. Cook until beef begins to brown, about 10 to 15 minutes. Let mixture cool completely.
• While beef is cooking, split puff pastry in half if it's in one piece. Roll out each piece with a floured rolling pin to roughly 9 x 11 inches. Line an 8- or 9- x 11-inch baking dish, or a shallow 2-quart gratin dish, with 1 piece of pastry, pulling up the dough to cover the sides of baking dish.
• Whisk 2 eggs and add to cooled beef mixture. Spoon mixture over pastry and top with chopped parsley and dill. Top with remaining piece of pastry, pinching together the sides of both pieces of pastry. Chill in fridge for at least 1 hour (and up to 4 hours) or freeze for 15 minutes.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk remaining egg and brush over pastry. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake until golden on top, about 40 minutes. Allow to cool 15 to 20 minutes before cutting. Pastel may appear wet when removed from oven, but pastry will absorb the moisture as it sits.

CHILEAN POTATO PIE (PASTEL DE PAPAS)

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
• Place the potatoes into a large pot and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for a minute or two. Mash the hot potatoes with butter and salt. Let cool until just warm; stir in the beaten egg until smooth.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and tomato paste; continue cooking until the tomatoes soften and begin to lose their shape. Add the ground beef and cook until browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in the panquehue cheese and parsley; season to taste with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.
• Spread half of the mashed potato mixture into the prepared baking dish. Cover with the ground beef mixture, then spread the remaining mashed potatoes over the beef to completely cover.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the potatoes are hot and the top is lightly browned, about 40 minutes.