Beef Empanadas

My Hubby's birthday is New Year's Eve and this year his only request was that I make him empanadas.
He served as a missionary in Chile and he actually tried to make empanadas for me
on one of our first dates.
They were miserable and I barely choked them down, wishing I had a huge napkin
to hide everything in while I also tried to convinced him I was "The One".

It's been a long time since then and I finally got a real authentic recipe from our neighbor who was a missionary in Argentina.  They are delicious and our whole family pitched in to put them together!

Beef Empanadas
Dough:
8 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (3/4 cup) vegetable shortening, melted
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) vegetable oil
1 1/3 cup milk
1 1/3 cup water

Filling:
2 cups chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 lbs extra lean ground beef
6 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 can olives, drained and sliced, black or green
1/2 cup raisins
Salt to taste

Prepare Dough:
Combine flour, salt, shortening and vegetable oil in large mixing bowl; stir to blend.  Heat milk in microwave until small bubbles appear around edges (about 4 min).  Add flour to mixture along with warm water.  Stir to form soft dough.  Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth (about 3 min).  Cover with plastic wrap and let rest 20 minutes.
Prepare Filling:
Saute onion in the oil in large skillet until tender and translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic at the end.  Set aside onions.  Crumble beef into skillet, saute, stirring until browned.  Stir in chili powder and cumin.  Stir in olives, raisins, onions, and chopped eggs.

Form dough into 4 12" long rolls.  Slice each roll into 10 equal pieces and roll each piece into a 5 inch round.
Put about 3-4 tablespoons of the filling in the center of each round.  Moisten the edges and fold in half.  Press edges firmly together and twist along the edge to secure.  Each empanada should be very plump with filling.  Place on a greased cookie sheet until you are finished.

To bake: Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 15 minutes.
To fry: Heat oil till bubbles from immediately when a tiny piece of dough is dropped in oil.  Fry on each side until golden brown.  Drain on a paper towel lined plate.

Serve hot with salsa and sour cream.  We actually did a mixture of half sour cream half Chili Verde salsa for a dipping sauce and it was great!  I fried mine and they cooked so quick and were so good!  My daughter even ate them and that's a miracle in itself!  At 9 years old she has refused to eat anything besides chicken till this year~when finally the enticing smell of bacon cooking made her broader her horizon's as far as protein goes....

This makes a huge batch~for us 3 it means we've been eating empanadas every day this week.  We also made a few with just a cube of pepper jack cheese in them~which is great if you aren't brave enough to eat raisins, egg and green olive in the same bite!

I finished taking down all my Christmas decorations today.  Our kids only got 1 1/2 weeks off from school and it disappeared so fast!  We decided to put our blogging aside and enjoy them to the fullest.
I am happy that I get to put up Valentine stuff soon.  How long do you wait till you put up Valentines?

Day 6 ~ Avocado Salad & Happy New Year!

Avocado Salsa

Sauce:

1/3 c. light olive oil

1/2 c. lime juice

1/3 c. apple cider vinegar

2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

Diced Vegetables:

1 (15 0z.) can corn niblets, drained

1 small can chopped olives, don't drain

1 pinch red pepper flakes

1/3-1/2 bunch green onion, chopped fine

1-2 cloves garlic, chopped fine

3 diced tomatoes

3 lg. avocados, chopped (add last)

Make sauce in a small bowl and set aside.  Mix diced vegetables in a large bowl. 

 Pour sauce over vegetables and enjoy. 

Nicole and I made this the other day and it was pretty tasty! 

  It's a great alternative to regular salsa. Serve with chips and even the little ones will eat this up.

The recipe comes from my friend Trina, she is an excellent cook and a mom to six boys! (my hero)

I will have to share her carrot chowder recipe sometime...it is so good!

Happy New Year! 

Wishing you a fun filled night of friends, family, and tasty treats!

Day 5~ Stuffed Mushrooms

In high school I had a date with a boy I was trying

so hard to impress.

Imagine my surprise when we went to Pizza Hut

and he being all manly had to order the pizza with ham and mushrooms.

I seriously froze in my chair,

I might as well have been on Fear Factor eating creepy crawly things~

yes, that's what I thought of mushrooms.

Well the only thing that date was good for is that it made me love mushrooms!

So here's my version of a couple of recipes I put together

that as my hubby puts it~are the most perfect stuffed mushrooms ever!

STUFFED MUSHROOMS

Olive oil or Pam vegetable spray

1 slice of white sandwich bread

2 T. butter

1 garlic clove

1/2 of one small onion finely diced

sprinkle of garlic powder

4 oz soft goat cheese

2 T. dried parsley

1/4 tsp. red-pepper flakes

coarse salt

approximately 16 golf ball size white button mushrooms

1.  Preheat your over to 400 degrees and lightly oil your baking sheet.

2.  Toast your white bread and crumble it into fine pieces~

can use a food processor to make it really fine.

Add a light sprinkle of garlic powder and salt.  Set aside.

3.  Remove mushroom stems and dice finely.

4.  In a medium saute pan cook butter, onions, mushroom stems and garlic.

Cook until tender. Add in the parsley flakes, red pepper flakes and season with salt to desired taste.

5.  Add onion, garlic and mushroom stem mixture to goat cheese. 

6.  Spoon filling into each mushroom and press the top of the mushroom with cheese mixture into the breadcrumbs.  Place on baking sheet and bake until mushrooms are tender and lightly browned approximately 15-20 minutes.

They are so yummy and cheesy with a kick from the red pepper flakes! 

Too good to pass up!

Enjoy!



Day 4~ Cranberry Salsa

Okay so this one sounds weird but it is seriously delicious!

My wonderful friend Carrie is one of the best cooks I've ever met. 

 She brought this over for us as a sweet Christmas treat
 and I admit I was skeptical and then I devoured most of it.....

Yup, "Lay off, man, I'm STARVING! [ pause ] Diet starts Monday!"

Sorry couldn't resist a bit of Chris Farley!

CRANBERRY SALSA

3 cups fresh cranberries, rinsed, drained (pick out any bruised or mushy ones)

1/4 cup green onions

2 small jalapeno peppers (seeds & ribs removed...

if you like it hot leave in some seeds, I probably leave in 1/8 tsp seeds.)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves

1 T. very finely grated fresh ginger (can substitute 1/4 tsp. ground ginger)

Juice from 1/2 a lemon

2 8 oz. cubes Cream Cheese

Ritz Crackers

Place all the ingredients except the lemon juice and cream cheese

 into a food processor and mix until well chopped. 

Stir the lemon juice into the salsa. 

 Refrigerate for a few hours before serving to marry the flavors. 

There is enough salsa for 2 cubes of cream cheese. 

Serve by placing one of the softened cream cheese cubes on a

serving plate then pour 1/2 the salsa over the top. 

Have plenty of Ritz crackers on hand for dipping!

I actually put everything in the food processor and

I added the salt which can be omitted. 

The salt really helps bring out the flavors though.

You want the consistency to be really fine~

It's so good so enjoy!

Candace and I were busy in the kitchen this afternoon making a few more

recipes to share, so stay tuned to see what's next!

Day 3 ~ Brazilian Limeade & Cucumber Crackers

It's day # 3 trying out appetizer recipes for New Year's Eve.  

I found this recipe in our Church cookbook, but it actually comes from my very talented neighbor, Heather.

She has great taste in everything from food to decor. There are several  of Heather's appetizers in the book, so I couldn't help sharing another one of her recipes, Cucumber Crackers.

Here's what you will need for the Brazilian Limeade:

Sugar, sweetened condensed milk, limes, water, and ice. 

Brazilian Limeade

 2 limes

1/2 c. sugar

3 T. sweetened condensed milk

3 c. water

Ice

Directions

Wash limes, cut off ends and slice into eight wedges.  Place limes in a blender with sugar, sweetened condensed milk, water, and ice.  Blend in an electric blender, pulsing 5 times.  Strain through a fine mesh strainer to remove rinds.  Serve over ice. 

This drink was so yummy. My kids loved it! The sweetened condensed milk added an interesting taste. 

 Be sure to use a fine strainer, or you will be choking on chunks of lime. 

Heather's cucumber crackers were delicious too. 

 I like that it's light to eat along with some of the rich appetizers.

 The Garden Vegetable Cream Cheese also has a kick to it.

Cucumber Crackers

Ritz Crackers

Garden Vegetable Cream Cheese

Cucumber, sliced

Mrs. Dash original

Directions:

Spread cream cheese onto cracker.

Top with a cucumber slice and sprinkle with Mrs. Dash.

How EASY is that? Simple and delicious!

She has a couple more in the cookbook, I just might have to share. 

 Thanks Heather!

Nicole has another great appetizer to share tomorrow!

 

Day 2: Cheesy Corn Dip

This yummy recipe comes from

my sister-in-law Autumn.

Now that they are on the west coast

her and her little family have made the trek up to Idaho

for New Year's for the last couple of years.

My poor hubby has the misfortune of a December 31st birthday

so it has always made his day to have someone actually want

to come celebrate it with him

and cook him some good food!

Autumn comes ready to go

with almost a dozen tasty things to make up

that not only suffice for New Year's Eve

but for many days to follow.

This recipe is by far one of my favorites

and I've made it A LOT throughout the year

plus my picky eater daughter will gobble it up!

Cheesy Corn Dip

(No we are not sponsored by Walmart,

I simply went there today to check out the after Christmas clearance

and got my cooking supplies.):)

1 can Rotel tomatoes, drained

1 can corn, drained

1 can hominy, drained

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

A  handful of finely chopped fresh cilantro

Salt/pepper to taste

1 8 oz package cream cheese

2 cups shredded Mexican style cheese

Mix all together, place in dish and bake until bubbly and hot in a 375 degree oven.

Serve with chips and salsa for extra kick!.

If you can't find Rotel tomatoes, any can of stewed tomatoes with chilies will work.

I admit I was a little nervous of the hominy too!

I had never tasted it before but it adds such a fun texture to the dip

I know you'll fall in love like I did!

Wet Your Appetite ~ Caramel Dip

Now that Christmas is over we are looking forward to celebrating New Years!

Every day this week we'll be sharing recipes of our favorite appetizers

that we love to do up for New Year's Eve and Day!

We promise that each one is super easy and absolutely delish!

First up is a yummy and super easy caramel dip made from sweetened condensed milk. 

Our sister-in-law from Texas just delighted us last week with this scrumptious treat.

Just take a can of sweetened condensed milk

and heat it in a pot of water over medium low heat for about 2 hours.

If you're up north it will take 2 hours but down in Texas it

takes about an hour. :)

Make sure to turn the can over every ten minutes so it cooks evenly.
(please excuse the gross BBQ'd tongs:))

Let it cool before you open it and then serve with sliced apples

or over ice cream, or anything else your heart desires!

Yummy and easy!
**We came across warnings that the can could possibly explode using the boiling in the can method. If you are worried...please use the double boiler method.  Open can, pour milk into glass dish, set dish over pan of boiling water, stir until thickened.**

Stay tuned tomorrow to see what's next!