Cheese Empanadas Recipes

CHEESY CHICKEN EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a baking sheet with nonstick spray.
• Place a large saute pan over medium heat and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onion, jalapeno, garlic, green onions and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• In a large bowl, combine the chicken, cheese, cream cheese, sauteed mixture and hot sauce together.
• Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Set aside. Sprinkle flour on your work surface and unroll the pie dough.
• Roll out each round to a 13-inch circle. Cut each crust into eight 4-inch circles with a biscuit cutter. You can knead the scraps and then roll out, if necessary. Spoon about 1 heaping tablespoon of the chicken mixture into the center of each round. Brush the edges with the egg wash and fold each circle in half. Gently press on the top of the empanada to release any air. Seal the edges with a fork and brush the top with the remaining egg wash. Sprinkle with chile powder. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
• Serve the chicken empanadas with the Chili Lime Dipping Sauce.
• Combine the yogurt, chipotle and lime zest and juice in a bowl.

CHILEAN-STYLE CHEESE EMPANADAS (FRITAS DE QUESO)

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar.
• Gently mix the vegetable shortening into the flour.
• Place the milk and water in a saucepan and heat until almost boiling.
• Stir the hot liquid into the flour mixture. Add more water (1 tablespoon at a time) if the mixture seems too dry and crumbly, or add more flour if the mixture is too wet and sticky.
• Knead dough gently until well mixed and homogenous.
• Divide dough into 16 portions, and roll each piece into a ball. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.
• Grate or finely chop cheese.
• Roll each ball of dough into a 6- to 7-inch circle.
• Place 1 ounce of cheese in the center of each dough circle.
• Fold the dough in half over the cheese to form a semicircle.
• Press down firmly along edges to seal.
• Roll the edge inward over itself and press down again to seal.
• Crimp edge decoratively with a fork, pressing to seal.
• In a deep-sided skillet, pot, or deep-fat fryer, heat several inches of vegetable oil to 350 F. Fry empanadas in batches, turning at least once, until golden brown.
• Drain empanadas on paper towels.
• Empanadas can be kept warm in a 200 F oven for up to 1 hour before serving. Serve warm.

CHEESY GUAVA EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray 2 baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray.
• Put 3 or 4 of the empanada wrappers on a flat work surface. Spoon 2 teaspoons of cream cheese on the bottom half of each, then spread to create a half-moon shape, leaving a 1/2-inch gap between the cream cheese and the edge. Divide the guava paste into 1-ounce sections; depending on how the paste is packaged, you can either cut it into planks or scoop out about 3 teaspoons per empanada (using 3 teaspoons rather than 1 tablespoon will make the empanadas easier to seal). Finally, top each empanada with about 2 tablespoons of grated cheese.
• Make an egg wash by whisking the egg in a small bowl with a splash of water. Brush the outer edge of each wrapper with the egg wash, then seal by folding each wrapper in half and pressing the edges together with your fingers. Arrange the empanadas on the prepared baking sheets, then crimp the edges of each with a fork, pushing down enough to seal but not enough to go through the dough. Assemble, seal and crimp the remaining empanadas.
• Brush the top side of each empanada with the egg wash, then bake until the outsides are dark golden brown and feel crispy to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for at least 5 minutes, then serve.

CREAM CHEESE EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Cream margarine and cream cheese in bowl.
• Blend in flour and salt.
• Chill for 2 hours to overnight.
• Roll dough on floured surface. Cut with biscuit cutter.
• Spoon apple filling; seal edges with fork.
• Place on baking sheet.
• Mix egg white and 1 T. water. Brush over empanadas.
• Sprinkle with mixture of cinnamon and sugar.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

CORN, CHEESE & CHILLI EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Make the filling by mixing the corn, coriander, spring onion, cheese and chilli with some seasoning.
• Unroll the pastry sheet, roll a little thinner with a rolling pin, then use a 10cm circle cutter to cut out circles of pastry. (You should get 6 circles, then re-roll the trimmings for 2 more.) Brush edges of the circles with a little of the beaten egg, then spoon a couple of teaspoonfuls of filling mixture onto each. Fold over one half of the pastry, and seal by pinching the edge with your fingers, until you have 8 small pastyshaped empanadas. Arrange on a baking parchment lined baking sheet, brush with the rest of the egg and scatter with sesame seeds. Cover and chill for at least 30 mins before baking.
• To serve, heat oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6 and bake for 20 mins until golden and crisp.