how to make apple cinnamon empanadas

Empanadas were my absolute favorite thing about living in South America.  I knew that I would have to try to make them when I returned home and I finally got around to it!!Although I have only tasted savory empanadas (ham & cheese or marinated chicken or potatoes & corn), I was excited to try to make sweet empanadas, which I think are more popular in Mexico. 
They were absolutely delicious, and, although time-consuming, super easy. I will definitely be making these again. P.S. my nana (grandma) loved these and asked me to write the recipe down for her (en español)! So that is the Mexican stamp of approval.
   
Ingredients 
Pastry: 1 cup butter, chilled 8 ounces cream cheese, chilled 2 1/3 cups flour 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon vanilla 
Filling: 2 tablespoons butter 4-5 firm green apples 1/2 cup sugar 1-2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/4 cup brown sugar 2 tablespoons corn starch Pinch of salt (to taste) 3 tablespoons dulce de leche 1 egg yolk Sugar for sprinkling 
Preparation 
1. Make the pastry dough: Add the flour, salt and sugar to the bowl of a food processor and pulse briefly.  2. Add the butter, cut into 1 tablespoon pieces and the cream cheese (also cut into pieces) to the bowl and pulse several times, just until mixture starts to come together. Add the vanilla and pulse twice more briefly. 3. Turn dough mixture out onto a piece of plastic wrap. Bring dough together into a disk, wrap with plastic, and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight. 4. Make the filling: Peel and core the apples, then cut them into small cubes. Add apples to a saucepan with the butter, sugar, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. 5. Stir apples over medium heat, cooking them until they are just tender. In a small bowl, mix a tablespoon or two of water into the corn starch until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture to the apples and cook, stirring, until mixture starts to thicken.6. Remove apples from heat and stir in the optional dulce de leche until well mixed. 7. Chill apple mixture for at least an hour, stirring occasionally. 8. Shape empanadas: Roll out dough (in 2 or 3 batches)on floured surface to about 1/4-1/8 inch thickness. Cut circles of dough about 5-6 inches in diameter. 9. Wet the edge of a dough circle slightly, all around the perimeter. Place 1 scant tablespoon of filling in the middle of the dough. Fold the circle in half, enclosing the filling, and pinch the edges together firmly to seal, flattening and extending them slightly as you pinch them. Fold and crimp the flattened edge over itself decoratively. (see how to fill and shape empanadas. Repeat with remaining empanadas.  10. Chill empanadas for about an hour for best results (or 15 minutes in the freezer). Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix egg yolk with a little bit of water and brush over empanadas. Sprinkle empanadas with sugar. 11. Bake empanadas until puffed and golden brown, about 20 minutes. 
 Soooo yummy. Please make these. Recipe courtesy of About.com
The week before I made Pioneer Woman's cinnamon rolls (best cinnamon rolls you will ever taste). And then, the same day that I made the empanadas, I also made a pumpkin cheesecake and oatmeal-cranberry-white chocolate chip cookies. The cookies were much better the first time I made them (a long time ago) because I used craisins, and not dried cranberries. They were still good, but the dried cranberries kind of threw off the taste.So if you make them, use craisins :) 


PHONE POLAROIDS:

Alfajores 101

In my last post I mentioned that my trip to Buenos Aires resulted in a freakish obsession with alfajores.As if writing that blog post wasn't enough to make me miss my favorite treat from South America, I happened to speak to somebody later that week at a BBQ who had been to Argentina, tasted alfajores, and shared my love for them! That did it. I went home, researched recipes for a few days, and set outto recreate those little shortbread/caramel/coconut gems. Here are my results:
Alfajores de maizena by Pip in the City All-purpose flour 1 2/3 cups  Maizena (corn starch) 2 1/2 cups  Baking soda 1/2 teaspoon  Baking powder 2 teaspoons  Butter 1 cup Sugar 3/4 cup  Egg yolks 3  Cognac or whiskey 1 teaspoon  Vanilla extract 1 teaspoon  Grated lemon zest 1-2 teaspoons

1. Sift dry ingredients together. 2. Cream the butter with the sugar. Add the egg yolks, the vanilla extract, the cognac/whiskey, and the lemon zest. 3. Add this cream to the dry ingredients, making a hole in the middle of the flour. Use a spoon to make a crumbly dough and be VERY careful not to overwork the dough or knead with your hands. When you see that the dough is cohesive enough, make a ball with your hands pressing the different pieces together. 4. Cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 30-60 minutes (30 is usually enough if you are in a hurry).

5. Roll out the dough, carefully flouring the counter until it gets around 1/2 a centimeter thick. Cut with a round cutter and continue to join the scraps again and again until you´ve used all the dough.  6. Place in a clean cookie sheet and bake for around 17-20 minutes in a 180°C-350°F oven. Please check often after the first 10 minutes. The dough should be white, not golden (it can appear undone, but it is not! And if you wait too much you will end up with a dry alfajor).  7. Quickly remove the cookies and place them in a rack (otherwise they can get burned and will get stuck to the cookie sheet).
 
8. Once the cookies are cold, put a spoonful of dulce de leche in the middle of one cookie and carefully place another cookie on top. Press the top cookie gently to get the dulce de leche to the corners of the alfajor. 9. Roll the sides on some shredded coconut for a classic look. If you are feeling fancy, dip the alfajores in some chocolate ganache!!
 
I was overjoyed with the result. I thought it would be funny to take a picture of myself takingthe first bite, but I was nowhere near prepared for the ecstasy I was about to experience. That picture below (left) is not staged or fake HAHAHA. That is what you call pure bliss. 

I was afraid that my opinion of the cookies was biased and was really nervous when I handed themout to my cousins and aunts. The chorus of moans and "Oh my Gods" reassured me that theyturned out every bit as delicious as I thought. Many thanks to Pip for a wonderful recipe. 
Let me know if you make these! You won't regret it!

Lots of Love

Summer has been wonda-full. At first things were kind of hectic because I was running around town trying to see all of the people/places/things I missed while I was out of the country. THEN things got even more hectic when I started looking for jobs. I am still looking for jobs, but my sense of urgency is gone now that I have realized that it might be better to slow down and wait for better opportunities to present themselves.

I have spent the past few days really enjoying the absolute freedom I have. My cousin Bailey came over and hung out with me for a while. Goodness, that girl is awesome. We talked all day, watched movies, read books, watched the entire season of Keeping Up With the Kardashians (haha), and had delicious culinary adventures. The other night we went to Trader Joes and armed ourselves with some ingredients to make a pizza. Here are our results:







Hungry yet? Finished product:







Soooo... on the list for my Day Zero Project, goal #063 says "Spend the day with a child". Let me make this clear: Bailey is NOT a child. She is a beautiful, intelligent, and talented young lady. The thing is, when I originally created this list two years ago, she was a child. And, to be honest, I created this goal with her in mind. I have always enjoyed spending time with her and I made a promise to myself that I would never allow myself to become too busy to hang out with one of my favorite people.

Therefore, I hereby declare that goal #063 be changed to say "Spend the day with my cousin Bailey". 
Bay, if you're out there reading this, I love you and can't wait to spend many more days hanging out with you!!!


♥ ♥ ♥


In other news, I chopped off my hair, accomplishing goal #080. Get a short haircut.




I love it. 


*and yes, I am donating it to Locks of Love!

cinnamon, spice, & everything nice

 I made for snickerdoodles for Melissa's birthday a few weeks ago.
I loveeee snickerdoodles and these are the absolute best I have ever had.
Secret tip: use FRESH baking soda to make them perfectly round & fluffy.