Chicken Empanadas

I love me some empanadas! I love me some bread, crust, dough, anything that uses flour. Carbs are our friend (lol), in moderation. I don’t know why, but I love bread, I can survive off of bread alone. So this little treat is right up my alley. A friend of mine used this recipe for her Christmas party, and she said everyone loved them. I made some spicy beef empanadas last year, and made it with homemade pie dough, and that recipe said to fry them, they were delicious. There are pictures of them in the photo gallery on my website. These are perfect appetizers for parties, they hold well on the buffet station, and they’re eloquent enough to be tray passed. You can do some nice designs in the dough to make them more fancy. They actually can be made in advance and froze; they go directly from the freezer to the oven with no problem. Try it and let us know how it comes out!



Yield 20 each



1 Box (15 oz) refrigerated piecrusts (two 11 inch rounds)

4 oz cream cheese

2 tbs Fresh cilantro, finely chopped

2 tbs Salsa

½ tsp ground cumin

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp garlic powder

1 c finely chopped cooked chicken

1 egg, beaten

Additional Salsa



1. Remove piecrust pouches from box; let stand at room temperature 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Heat cream cheese in a small heavy saucepan over low heat; cook and stir until melted. Add cilantro, salsa, cumin, salt and garlic powder; stir until smooth. Stir in chicken; remove from heat.

3. Preheat oven to 425ºF. Line 2 baking sheets with foil. Unfold piecrusts; remove plastic film. Roll out slightly on a lightly floured surface. Cut crusts into 3-inch rounds using a biscuit cutter. Reroll piecrust scraps and cut enough additional to equal 20 rounds.

4. Place about 2 tsp of chicken mixture in the center of each round. Brush edges lightly with water. Pull one side of the dough over filling to form half circle; pinch edges to seal.

5. Place 10 empanadas on each prepared baking sheet; brush lightly with egg. Bake 16-18 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve with salsa.



Note: Empanadas can be prepared ahead of time and frozen. Simply wrap unbaked empanadas in plastic wrap and freeze. To bake, unwrap and follow directions in step 5, baking 18 to 20 minutes.
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Sincerely,
Saundra D. Jones, CC
Chef/Owner
Divine Cuisine Event Planning & Catering
www.divinecuisineepc.com
info@divinecuisineepc.com
301-326-7555
"All things are possible through Christ who strengthens me"!