Chicken Empanadas

This is a recipe from one of my bloggy friends, Sarah, at Short Stop. Her Chicken Empanadas looked delicious and I'm so amazed that it's a recipe she came up with on her own (minus the "extra butt")! Way to go, Sarah!! She has given me permission to post her recipe here for you all to enjoy (please check out her blog for the full tutorial and all the beautiful pictures to go along with it). It's really simple and it's so yummy!!


Chicken Empanadas
Sarah's Recipe

2 chicken breasts, roasted
1 jalapeno, seeded (if desired)
1/2 red pepper
1/2 green pepper
1 small onion
8 ounces Mexican blend cheese, shredded
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (15 ounce) package of frozen pie crust or homemade pie crust for a double crust pie

Place chicken, jalapeno, red pepper, green pepper, and onion in a food processor and process til blended and chopped. Or finely chop on a cutting board or mat into very small pieces. Remove from food processor and place in a medium bowl. Add Mexican blend cheese, cream cheese, cumin, crushed red pepper flakes, chili powder, garlic powder and salt. Mix together with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined.

Roll out pie dough and using a biscuit cutter, round cookie cutter, or edge of a drinking glass, cut dough into circles. Using a pastry brush, brush edges with water.

Place one rounded teaspoon of filling into each round, and fold over to form a half-moon shape. Gently press the edges closed to seal. Using a fork, make indentations all the way around the edges to seal completely.

Place the empanadas on a greaased, foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees, or until the crust is golden.

Serve warm with salsa, sour cream, and guacamole, or ranch dressing for dipping.

*Note: These are appetizer-sized Chicken Empanadas. This recipe makes a TON of these. Store remainder in a freezer bag in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat in oven or toaster oven until heated through.


Ok, here are my notes:

1. I omitted the jalapeno. I'm intimidated by using this spicy vegetable.
2. I didn't have any green peppers so I just used red and orange.
3. I didn't use the full 2 tsp of cumin and I thought it was spicy enough - maybe 1 1/2 tsp.
4. I used 2 (15 ounce) packages of refrigerated pie crust. 1 package wasn't enough. I don't know if I wasn't rolling out the dough thin enough or if I wasn't using enough filling in each empanada (even though the filling was oozing out of the pastry).

These are delicious and the recipe does make a lot. It was a really simple process and we enjoyed this yummy snack!!