So! As far as the food. I did empanadas because they're a good finger food and you can prepare and freeze them the night before. If you choose to do so, just individually wrap them in plastic wrap and bag them. Alternatively, you can place them in Tupperware separated by parchment paper to keep them from sticking together. I did a version with diced mushrooms, red onion and goat cheese but the beef ones were a real hit so I'm including the recipe here. You can put literally anything in an empanada, so have at it. I'm not a very experienced baker, so my dough is a little stickier than it should be. It comes out tasting fantastic, but I'm totally open to any modifications you guys can suggest. I also did some antipasto kabobs and cheesecake stuffed strawberries, both of which I found on Pinterest. Kind of an eclectic menu. Ideally I would have done some sort of theme, but sometimes it's fun just to make all of the random things you want to make.
Beef, Poblano and Potato Empanadas (makes 10-13)
Ingredients for dough:
-3 cups flour
-1 tbsp salt
-1 tsp sugar
-3 shortening (chilled is better)
-1 tbsp butter
-1/3 cup cold water
-2 eggs
-1 tbsp vinegar
Filling:
-Half pound of ground beef
-1 small potato
-1/2 white onion
-1 poblano pepper
-1 clove garlic
-Cumin, chili powder, oregano, salt and pepper for seasoning
-Cheese of your preference. I used a pre-grated mexican cheese blend for convenience sake but if I wanted to be a bit more splurgy I'd get a nice wedge of manchego.
Instructions:
1 - Mix together the flour, salt and sugar
2 - In a separate bowl beat the eggs then add the vinegar and water then set aside
3 - Divide the shortening and butter into small chunks
4 - Cut the shortening and butter into the flour mix (Look online for how to do this. I don't have a pastry cutter so I used two knives)
5 - Add the wet ingredients in and mix.
6 - Once it becomes stiff, kind smush it with your hands then knead on a floured surface
7 - Wrap the dough ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour
While dough is chilling, prepare your filling. Hey that rhymed.
8 - Dice potato, poblano (removing seeds) and onion
9 - Saute in olive oil over medium heat until almost tender, adding the garlic after about 10 minutes
10 - Add beef and cook until brown
11 - While beef is cooking, add salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. I'm sorry that i don't have precise measurements. It's all a matter of personal taste though I will say I'm quite generous with the cumin and chili powder. You can taste it when it's all cooked and dump some more in there if you need to
Let mixture cool then prepare the dough. Now's also a good time to preheat the oven to 375.
12 - Roll out dough on floured surface (add flour between the dough and rolling pin too to keep it from sticking)
13 - Cut into 6 inch circles
14 - Rolling out the scraps should give you an extra 2 or 3 empanadas so do that
15 - Place a spoonful of the beer mixture in each circle then top with a pinch of cheese
16 - Fold dough in half over mixture then crimp with the tines of a fork (super easy but google it if you're not sure)
17 - Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 375 until golden brown. Should be about 20 minutes, but longer if you froze them the night before. Just keep an eye out and check every 3-5 minutes when you're on the home stretch. I've heard people say to paint egg on them prior to baking to make them shiny and pretty, so if you try that let me know how it goes!
Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries:
Recipe via Thesweetslife.com
Antipasto Kabobs:
Recipe via thehungryhousewife.com (I accidentally bought green olives with pits so I couldn't use those, but I did add artichoke hearts)
And of course no party is complete without...
Cheers!
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