Maritza and I made empanadas verdes tonight! Empanadas are like miniature simple calzones, stuffed with cheese, mushrooms or meat and they are very popular all over South and Central America. Maritza saw lots of them last fall in Panamá, and I saw lots in while I was in Ecuador. You can buy them on the street and in cafés all over here in Chile. They differ in the way they're made but the overall effect is similar. In Chile they are made of flour, but in Ecuador the shell is made from mashed green (not ripe) plaintains, hence the name "verde." So what we made isn't actually a Chilean dish at all but we thought it would be fun, and it was! They were also very yummy! Maritza made the dough in the afternoon while I was still at work. She boiled the plantain briefly then mashed it together with an egg and some butter. It then sat for a while to cool off and I came over to help her. She rolled out the dough and cut nice little circles out of it as in the picture on the right. Then I put little pre-cut slices of gauda ch
eese (not gouda), which is a mild cheese used a lot in Chile. Most empanadas de queso around here seem to be stuffed with it. We also added peas because Maritza had some, and we didn't feel like cutting onions (which is what the recipe called for).
So then I folded it over like a taco and squished the edges together using a fork (see photo to left). All ready to be fried! Hooray! Deep-frying the empanadas stiffens the dough and melts the cheese. Mmmm. All ready to eat, warm and all melty!
Maritza and I made empanadas verdes tonight! Empanadas are like miniature simple calzones, stuffed with cheese, mushrooms or meat and they are very popular all over South and Central America. Maritza saw lots of them last fall in Panamá, and I saw lots in while I was in Ecuador. You can buy them on the street and in cafés all over here in Chile. They differ in the way they're made but the overall effect is similar. In Chile they are made of flour, but in Ecuador the shell is made from mashed green (not ripe) plaintains, hence the name "verde." So what we made isn't actually a Chilean dish at all but we thought it would be fun, and it was! They were also very yummy! Maritza made the dough in the afternoon while I was still at work. She boiled the plantain briefly then mashed it together with an egg and some butter. It then sat for a while to cool off and I came over to help her. She rolled out the dough and cut nice little circles out of it as in the picture on the right. Then I put little pre-cut slices of gauda ch
eese (not gouda), which is a mild cheese used a lot in Chile. Most empanadas de queso around here seem to be stuffed with it. We also added peas because Maritza had some, and we didn't feel like cutting onions (which is what the recipe called for). 
So then I folded it over like a taco and squished the edges together using a fork (see photo to left). All ready to be fried! Hooray! Deep-frying the empanadas stiffens the dough and melts the cheese. Mmmm. All ready to eat, warm and all melty!
1 comment:
Dear Lee,
You should sincerely make an effort to proofread your entries. Their is not the same as they're. This is just some friendly advice from your pal in editting, way back in corporate America, who is leaving for Europe in two days. (Thank God!)
Love,
Mollo
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