Laylita’s recipes

These empanadas are the result of over shopping at the farmers market and successful kitchen experimentation. I was thinking that swiss chard and goat cheese would go well together in a pasta dish or maybe a pizza, but it just happened that I forgot that I also bought a bunch of beets at the same stand where I got the swiss chard, and when I pulled out the ingredients, I thought crap what can I do with these beets? I’ll just have to add them to whatever I decide to cook, which ended up being empanadas. I have to admit that I was somewhat skeptical about these; I thought the stuffing tasted good but still wasn’t sure how they were going to turn out. I tasted them and liked them but wondered if anyone else would (sometimes I like anything I eat), so I took one to Nicolas and he loved it, then as I was taking pictures of them I thought I should try tasting them with the spicy mint crème fraiche sauce I made earlier for a leek soup, and the sauce was just perfect with these empanadas. These were really easy to make, especially since I cheated and used the store bough empanada discs, next time I will try them with the homemade empanada dough.

Ingredients:

12 medium size or 20 small empanada discs (use homemade empanada dough for baking or store bought)

4 small beets, peeled, boiled until tender and diced

1 bunch of swiss chard, chopped

1 cup crumbled goat cheese

½ white onion, sliced

2 tbs olive oil

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tbs finely chopped fresh oregano

1 egg, yolk and white separated and lightly whisked

Salt to taste

Serve with: Spicy mint crème fraiche sauce

Preparation:

1. Heat the oil and sauté the onions and garlic for 3 minutes.
2. Add the chopped swiss chard and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove from the heat, cool down and mix with the diced beets, crumbled goat cheese and chopped oregano.
4. To assemble the empanadas spoon the stuffing on to the center of each empanada disc.
5. Brush the inside edges of the empanada discs with the egg whites, this is will help them seal better and keep the filling from leaking while baking .
6. Fold the empanada discs and seal the edges, use a fork to help seal the empanadas.
7. Lightly brush the top of the empanadas with the egg yolk; this will give a nice golden glow when they bake.
8. Chill the empanadas for at least 30 minutes, this will help them seal better and prevent leaks.
9. Pre-heat the oven to 400 F and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden.
10. Serve warm.

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