Baked Empanadas

Empanadas are like baby meat pies. The meat is ground beef that has been seasoned.
This recipe, I got from "The Pie and Pastry Bible" written by Rose Bevy Beranbaum.
I just use a simple pie crust but the rest is essentially hers.
The raisins and olives are optional but highly recommended.

This makes 12 empanadas.


Ingredients:

Simple pie crust for 9" 2 crust pie


MEAT FILLING-

2 Tablespoons raisins- optional
1 Tablespoon water for raisins
2 teaspoons lard or olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
a pinch of sugar
1 medium clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 pound ground beef
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 pepper
3/4 teaspoon ancho chile powder OR 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
7 pimento stuffed olives, chopped- optional

Make the pie crust and divide it into 12 equal pieces. Cover with towel and refrigerate until ready to use.
Soak the raisins in the water for 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Chop olives. Add to raisins.
Make the filling.
Put a skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Add the onions and sugar.
Stir occasionally until they turn golden- about 10 minutes.
Add the garlic and sprinkle with the paprika and cumin. Stir and cook for 2 minutes to bring out the flavor of the spices.
Add the meat, salt, pepper, chile powder, thyme, and oregano.
Cook until meat is browned all over.
Remove from heat and stir in the olives and rains.
Set aside and let the meat cool thoroughly before making the empanads.

One by one, roll each piece of dough into about a 6" circle. Just shape it the best you can.
Add 3 Tablespoons meat filling to the rolled out dough.
Bring the bottom edge up over the meat and seal closed. Just fold it over and press with your fingers.
Lay on a cookie sheet.
Repeat with all the dough and meat.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Stick the empanadas in the fridge until the oven is ready.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the pies are golden.
Cool for a few minutes before serving.

Ten Layer Dip

This dip is pretty awesome. The best toppings for a taco or burrito in a dip.
The ground beef is optional, but it is tasty.
You can shorten everything by using already made ingredients or go the whole nine yards and do everything from scratch.

You will need a large platter or shallow pan.


Ingredients:

2/3 cup sour cream
1/8 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon paprika
dash salt
2 cups awesome refried beans or a 16 oz can refried beans
1/4 lb ground beef fried and seasoned- optional
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup super easy guacamole or use ready made
1/4 cup sliced black olives
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 medium chopped tomato
1 teaspoon chopped cilantro

Combine the sour cream, cumin, cayenne pepper, paprika, and salt. Set aside for flavor to blend.
Heat up the beans. Spread on the platter.
Sprinkle the ground beef over the beans.
Sprinkle 1/2 of the cheese over that.
Spread the guacamole over the cheese.
Sprinkle over the black olives.
Spread the sour cream over the olives.
Sprinkle the onions, the tomatoes, cheddar cheese, and cilantro over the sour cream.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Mini Meatloaves

Mini meatloaves are one of my favorite meat foods. There isn't much to making them.
You can mix them up and bake them all in an hour.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Lightly grease a 9" x 13" baking pan.

Ingredients:

1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup oatmeal, preferably quick cooking but regular works too
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound ground beef
2/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoon mustard

In a bowl mix the egg, milk, cheese, oatmeal, salt, and ground beef.
Form into 8 loaves and put into baking pan.
In another bowl combine the ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar. Spoon that over the mini meatloaves.
Bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

Serve.

Spanish Rice

This is a favorite dish of mine. My mom used to make it a lot as I was growing up. In fact, this was the first meal I ever made all by myself.

Ingredients:

2 cups water

1 cup long grain rice

1 pound ground beef, turkey, or venison

1 white or yellow onion, chopped

1 Anaheim Chile or green pepper, chopped- optional

salt to taste

pepper to taste

1 teaspoon chili powder

scant 1/3 cup white sugar- optional

28-32 oz. tomato juice

In a medium pan add 2 cups water and season with small amount of salt. When it comes to a boil, add the 1 cup rice. Cover and turn down heat. Cook for 15 minutes, or until the water is completely absorbed. Remove from heat.

In a large skillet or dutch oven, cook the ground beef with the onion and pepper. Season with the salt and pepper as you cook it.

Drain the meat, if needed.

When the meat is cooked, add the rice to the pan. Pour in the tomato juice. I like it a bit saucier so I use the full quart, but you can use a bit less.

Add the chili powder and optional sugar. Taste and add more salt and pepper if you like.

Turn on heat to medium high and stir occasionally. When the mixture comes to a boil, turn the heat down. Continue to cook about 30 minutes or until you get the consistency you want. Also, continue to stir every once in a while.

It is important to have the heat on low at this point or you could scorch the bottom and ruin it.

This makes a nice big pot and will feed 5 people unless you have big eaters in the house.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I do.

Pasta Salsa

Pasta is very big in my house. So I am always trying to come up with news ideas for meals.
And this is what I came up with.
You can use any salsa. Either make a double batch of the fresh salsa recipe or just use some from the store.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
2-3 cups pasta of your choice
32 oz. salsa

In a large pan brown the ground meat, seasoning to taste. Drain, if desired.
To the meat in pan, add the salsa and heat to boiling. Add the pasta and cook until pasta is done. Since different shapes cook faster go by the directions for an idea of how long to cook.
Stir occasionally.
Once pasta is done, if the dish is not as thick as you'd like turn down the heat and let simmer for a few minutes longer.
Serves 4-6.
Very quick, simple, and tasty.
I hope you enjoy it.

Ground Turkey Casserole

This is a great dish, especially on a rainy or cool day.
It is my daughter's favorite.
Originally it was made using ground beef, but I use ground turkey most of the time.


Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Uses a 2 quart casserole dish

Ingredients:

1 (10-1/4 oz.) can condensed cream of celery soup
1 (10-1/4 oz.) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 (10-1/4 oz.) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 lb ground turkey or ground beef
1 large chopped onion
1/2 cup minute rice soaked in 1-1/2 cups warm water for 1/2 hour. Or cook 1/2 cup long grain white rice in 1 cup water for 15 minutes until water is absorbed.
salt and pepper are optional.

Brown the ground meat with the onion. In the casserole dish mix the meat, rice, and soups. Season with salt and pepper if you wish.
Cover the casserole and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover the casserole and bake for 30 minutes more.
Serve.

Serves 6.

Using low fat soup works wonderful in this.
Enjoy!