new family fave

A while ago I clipped this recipe for Ham and Cheese Empanadas from FamilyFun magazine. I'm always looking for dinner ideas that appeal especially to kids for all those nights I'm cooking and Chad is working. {Nothing frustrates Mommy more than a dinner gone cold because the kids don't like it and the hubby is at work.} "Ham and Cheese" sounded promising, although I wasn't entirely sure what empanadas were. So, off to the store I went in search of empanada wrappers. No luck. I guess we're a little too far from the border for this type of thing to be in my local freezer section. The recipe said you could use frozen puff pastry, but who wants to spend $7 on puff pastry? Not I.

So, I turned to trusty Google. Have you ever looked up recipes for puff pastry? No wonder they charge $7 for the stuff. The recipes I found involved rolling out butter (yes, butter), layering it between dough, rolling it again, folding it, refrigerating, rolling, folding, refrigerating, rolling, folding, refrigerating. all. day. long. Pepperidge Farms really earns their $.

But, then, glory be...a cheater's recipe. Completely for me! I was a little skeptical (sour cream in a pastry?), but it was seriously YUMMY! The empanadas turned out very tasty. Chad even loved them re-warmed when he got home.

I didn't take any pics of our final product. Sorry. But, here is the recipe exactly as I did it, which made 9 empanadas and enough pastry for 4 apple turn-overs for dessert (which I made using food-storage dried apples. So, so proud.) Enjoy!

Puff Pastry

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup butter, chilled and diced (I reduced the butter from the original recipe because I'm at 6,000 feet....but it worked fine for me)
  
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup cold water

1. Place flour in a medium bowl. Cut in butter, using a pastry blender, until mixture is the size of small peas.
2. Add sour cream. Stir with a fork, adding water, drop by drop, as needed, until pastry forms a ball. It should still be fairly dry. Don't add too much water!
3. Wrap in plastic and chill 6 hours or overnight.
   
4. When ready to use, roll pastry thinly (about 1/8 inch).

Yield: 12-13 5" rounds

Ham and Cheese Empanada Filling (I halved the original)

• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoons minced fresh parsley or 1 tsp dried parsley
  
• 4 ounces cooked ham, chopped
• 1 tablespoons bread crumbs
• 4 ounces mild Cheddar, shredded
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sour cream

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten; divided
  
• Pinch of black pepper

1. In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and parsley, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is transparent, about 3 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat, transfer the mixture to a medium-size bowl, and allow it to cool.

2. Add the ham, bread crumbs, cheese, sour cream, 1/2 of the beaten egg, and a pinch of black pepper to the bowl, and mix well.

3. Roll pastry on well-floured surface until 1/8" thick. Cut into 5" rounds. Dust with flour, as needed, to keep from sticking.
   

4. To assemble the turnovers: Place 1 1/2 heaping tablespoons of filling in the center of a pastry round and lightly moisten the edge of the circle with the egg mixture (add 1 tablespoon water to remaining egg). Fold the pastry in half and press the edges firmly to seal. Crimp the edge with a fork dipped in flour and pierce the top with the fork to allow steam to escape. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling, then refrigerate the empanadas for 30 minutes or freeze for later use. (I didn't have time to refrigerate, but it didn't seem to matter)

5. Heat the oven to 375°. Brush the turnovers with the egg wash and bake them on a parchment-lined baking sheet on the upper oven rack until golden, about 20 to 25 minutes. Allow the empanadas to cool for a few minutes before serving. Makes 8-9 medium-size turnovers.