Oozing cheese and bean empanadas

6 Servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2½ cup All-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 teaspoon Baking powder
¾ teaspoon Salt
¾ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
¼ cup Cold butter, chopped
¼ cup Vegetable oil
3 Egg yolks
1 cup Milk
⅓ pounds Shredded Colby cheese or monterey jack cheese
2 cups Cooked red kidney beans, drained
½ teaspoon Paprika
½ teaspoon Salt
¼ teaspoon Cayenne pepper
2 Egg whites

Directions

FOR THE DOUGH

FOR THE FILLING

To make the dough, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a bowl. Blend in the butter with a pastry blender or fork until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk in the oil, egg yolks, and half of the milk; gradually blend in the rest of the milk, forming a dough. Knead the dough briefly, until smooth, then set aside 10 to 15 minutes to rest.

To make the filling, combine the cheese, beans, paprika, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl and blend well. Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl until they form stiff peaks and then blend into the cheese and bean mixture.

Preheat the oven to 375F degrees.

Divide the dough into 6 equal balls. On a lightly floured board, roll each ball into a circle about ¼ inch thick. If the dough is too moist, sprinkle with a little flour. Place some of the bean and cheese mixture on one-half of each circle and then fold the dough over, enclosing the mixture and forming a half-moon shape. Press the edges with a fork to seal; prick the surface several times.

Place the empanadas on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown. Cool before serving.

Variation . . . Substitute 2 pounds of commercial biscuit dough for the homemade dough (i.e., refrigerator biscuits). Follow the baking times on the package; most take only 10 or so minutes to bake.

Yield: 6 servings Each serving provides: 593 Calories -- 30 g fat, 156 mg chol.

Jay says ... Empanadas are savory turnovers popular in Latin American countries. There are many kinds of empanadas, but my favorite is this version, which oozes with cheese and beans. Traditional empanadas have a buttery, biscuit like crust. -- from Lean Bean Cuisine (1995) Jay Solomon / ISBN 1-55958-438-6 / Beans, Vegetarian. Formatted by patH <phannema@...>

Recipe by: Jay Solomon of Vegetarian Times Posted to MC-Recipe Digest V1 #393 by patH <phannema@...> on Jan 28, 1997.

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