Damages arising from or related to competition (42USC2459f-1)

I was going to put off trying new dishes until after the holidays because I was planning to bake a lot of Christmas cookies, which would mean more than enough time in the kitchen for a month. But then TJ announced that he wanted to make empanadas, so I thought I might as well get the ingredients so we could make them together.

As it turned out, though, our recipes were completely different. My dough included masa and cornmeal, meaning my empanadas would be fried, whereas TJ wanted to bake his empanadas, so he used a wheat-based dough. And in typical TJ fashion, he had no recipe for the empanada fillings; he just wanted to improvise three types: beef, cheese and onion, and spinach and cheese. I wanted to be authentic, even though I don't really like some of the typical Argentinian ingredients. Then again, the most traditional recipe that I found on Food Network was from an Italian.

I didn't even bother to document the mixing of my dough, because it was so easy. It kind of reminded me of the homemade Play-Doh my mom and I used to make when I was a kid. After I made the dough, I realized that we were out of red peppers, so I decided to delay my empanadas for a day, which was a good idea because I didn't even want to look at empanada dough after helping TJ roll his out. The downside was, my dough dried out overnight, but I was able to re-hydrate it just by wetting my hands before rolling each of the 10 sections of dough.

After I bought some more red peppers and roasted them for 15 minutes in the oven, I was ready to make the filling. Having some peas left over from a tuna-noodle casserole the previous week, I substituted those for half of the raisins, which I don't really enjoy. (Incidentally, the casserole was the first I had ever made; being from the Midwest, TJ and I have a extraordinarily strong aversion to tuna-noodle casserole. But I found a recipe that seemed a little more interesting, and I added some local interpretations, like crushed tortilla chips instead of bread crumbs. TJ admitted that it was pretty good and that he would've liked it even more if I would've called it a cassoulet instead.)

The spices, scallions, and peppers elevated the main filling for the empanadas to its final form, so I gathered the other stuffings: hard-boiled eggs and pitted olives, two other ingredients that aren't exactly up my alley. But I was curious to see how they would hold up when the empanadas were fried, so I stuck to the classic combination.

I was actually most worried about rolling out the shells, especially after the battle with TJ's dough. For whatever reason, perhaps the decision to substitute some lard for butter, it was difficult to get his shells big enough without them flaking or cracking. I managed to get two or three shells for TJ, but after having to redo one three or four times, I handed over the rolling pin. My shells were a lot more forgiving; if they did split, I could suture them back together with some water and a pinch. One success from the first round of rolling that I did hold over to the second round was TJ's technique of sizing the circles with a saucer.

Maybe I wasn't exactly a rolling expert, though, because I ended up with only seven empanadas, when the recipe seemed to imply there would be ten. Even if there had been ten shells to stuff, there still would've been a lot of extra filling. Later in the week, we loaded it into pita bread smeared with hummus in an attempt to experience shawarma again.

Since I assisted TJ with the rolling duties for his empanadas, I called him to be fry cook for mine. (I'm still a little gun-shy after getting splattered with oil in the face while making samosas.) Unfortunately, I had already gotten the oil too hot, so the first batch came out a little browner than desired.

Burnt or not, the empanadas were pretty darn delicious, even though I cringed every time I bit into an olive. TJ ate three, proving that they were at least as good as the tuna-noodle casserole. I have to say, though, that the casserole wins in my book; clearly, I exhibit the convenience of the Midwestern housewife better than the finesse of the Argentinian ama de casa.