Empanadas

There are dozens of versions of empanadas out there, and really, the possibilities are endless as far as what you can put in them. Traditional fillings include picadillo, chicken, potatoes, spinach and even fruit, all depending on the region from which they come. My favorite is the cuban empanada, filled with picadillo. You can normally find the "discos", or empanada wrappers in the frozen section with other latin american foods.

These are also a great budget friendly meal, as the recipe uses many ingredients you probably already have around.

Cuban Empanadas

10 emapanada wrappers, thawed overnight in the refrigerator
Canola oil for frying
1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
pinch of cumin
8 oz tomato sauce
1 Tbs ketchup
1/3 cup white wine
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped green olives with pimento


Brown ground beef with onions, peppers and garlic in a large saute pan. Drain. Add remaining ingredients (except oil and wrappers), and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally until mixture has thickened. Remove bay leaf and allow to cool slightly.

Heat 2 inches of oil in a large heavy pot to 350ºF.

Lay one empanada wrapper on a plate or cutting board and place about 2 Tbs of picadillo in the center. Fold the empanada wrapper in half over the filling and press edges tightly closed with times of a fork, turn the empanada over and repeat pressing with fork on the other side. Repeat for remaining wrappers.

Carefully drop one or two empanadas in the hot oil and fry 2-3 minutes, turning once, until golden grown and crisp. Drain on paper towels.

Serve with hot sauce if desired.

Serves 5 (2 empanadas per person)

Note: You can probably do 15-20 empanadas with this amount of ground beef, and depending on appetites in your house you may want to go ahead and make the extras. Just keep in mind that they don't reheat all that well, they tend to get soggy. Leftover picadillo can also be served over rice the next day.

Cuban Churrasco with Chimichurri Sauce

I'm from New England and really consider that to be home, but in reality I've lived in FL longer than anywhere else (over 17 years now). When I first moved here I'll admit to being less than impressed with the food offerings, but then I was 19 and just being stubborn. I've really never been a picky eater, my father was a chef and my mother an excellent cook, so if there's any pickiness to my taste, it's just for quality ingredients and well prepared foods. I slowly warmed to the local cuisine and discovered Cuban food... that was it... I fell in love.

Before anyone comments that churrasco and chimichurri are not Cuban in origin, let me just say that I am aware of that. It's Argentinian or Brazilian, depending on the type of churrasco we're talking about, but the Cubans happen to have a very good version of it also, and that's what I have here today. The 2 main differences are in the marinade for the meat and the fact that the Cuban version of chimichurri contains cilantro as opposed to the traditional flat leaf parsley. I actually like to use a combination of both parsley and cilantro, but you can use either one.

And yes, those are roasted potatoes again, not very traditional, but we love them :)

Marinate 3 to 6 lbs of skirt or plate steak in the following for 8 to 24 hours:

10 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sour orange juice*
1/2 cup thinly sliced onion
1/2 teaspoon oregano
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Mash the garlic and salt into a paste using mortar and pestle or on a cutting board with the side of a knife. Stir in the juice, oil,onion and oregano.

*You can find bottled sour orange juice, or naranja agria, in the latin section of most grocery stores, but if not just use equal parts fresh lime and orange juice.

Remove the steaks and marinade from the refrigerator about an hour before you plan to grill them. Grill over a VERY hot fire for about 4 minutes per side for medium rare (recommended doneness for this meat). The fire should be hot enough that you can't hold your hand over it for more than a few seconds, this will allow you to get a nice char on the meat.



Remove from the grill and allow to sit for about 10 minutes. Slice thinly on a diagonal across the grain and serve with chimichurri sauce.

Chimichurri Sauce

3-6 cloves garlic (to taste)
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
juice of one lime
1/2 cup onion
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
1-2 Tbs chopped jalapeños (I use the jarred ones)
salt and pepper to taste
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Put everything except the oil in a blender and pulse until you have a thick mixture. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the olive oil, you don't want to do this in the blender, it will emulsify. Taste and add more salt, pepper, vinegar and lime juice as desired.