Ingredients

The following ingredients have 4 Servings
  • 3 Refrigerated Pie Crusts
  • 4 ounces Portuguese Chourico (small dice)
  • 8 ounces Extra Lean Ground Beef
  • 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 Roma Tomato, (small dice)
  • 1 tablespoon Diced Onion,
  • 1 tablespoon Minced Garlic
  • 1 Bay Leaf
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
  • 2 tablespoon Butter
  • 2 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 cup Milk
  • 1 teaspoon Lemon Juice
  • 1 teaspoon Parsley
  • 1/8 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
  • 1 ounce Cream Cheese
  • Cooking Spray
  • 1 large Egg ((for egg wash))

Instruction

  • Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the chorizo, ground beef, onions, garlic, tomatoes, bay leaf, salt and pepper and cook until the meat is no longer pink. Remove the pan from the heat, discard the bay leaf and set aside while you make the sauce mixture.  
  • Melt the butter in a small pot over medium high heat; then add flour to form a roux. Next, add milk, parsley, lemon juice, ground nutmeg and cream cheese. Whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is silky; then add the meat mixture and mix well.(You can prepare this mixture the day before; then refrigerate until ready to make your empanadas.)
  • Start by bringing your pie crust to room temperature and preheating the oven to 375 degrees F.  Spray some cooking spray on two sheet pans; then make a space to roll out the dough and fill the patties.
  • Working with one dough at a time, roll out the dough with a rolling pin so that it's flat. Using a 3 1/2-inch cookie/biscuit cutter, cut out circles. (You will have to re-roll out the dough to cut more circles out per dough sheet and will have a little waste.) 
  • Using a small spoon, add a dollop of the meat mixture on top of the dough circle. Fold the dough in half; then pinch the ends to seal the dough and place on the baking sheet. (They won't spread when cooking so you can place them close together.)
  • Repeat for all empanadas; then make an egg wash by mixing the egg with a little water and brush it on top of the empanadas. Bake the empanadas for 10-12 minutes until the dough is cooked and golden brown; serve hot