Empanadas de Argentina

Empanadas are enjoyed in many countries, majority of latin america as well as Spain and Portugal where the origin of the reicpe seems to lie, and recipes vary enormously. This version of Empanadas was introduced to me by a friend who lived for some years in Buenos Aires, and typically Argentinean. There are great many Italian immigrants in Argentina, and the subtle use of sultanas and olives suggest a touch of Italian influence. You can also make a bite size empanadas for a buffet, or potluck, it will surely disappear pretty quickly!

600-700g puff pastry dough
500g pork mince
1 onion, chopped
1 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 tbsp sultanas, chopped
10-15 green olives, deseeded and chopped
1 tsp powdered cumin
1 tbsp paprika
salt and pepper
extra virgine olive oil
1 egg

Immerse the sultanas in lukewarm water, leave for about half an hour
Prepare a flat surface to work on and dust with some flour.
Roll out the pastry dough about 3mm thick, cut out discs of about 15cm.
Keep them in the fridge, with a sheet of wax paper in between layers.
In a skillet sautè the onion and mince and thoroughly brown them, in just enough olive oil.
Add the sultanas, olives, spices and just enough salt and pepper, toss well.
Remove from heat and let it cool to the room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
On the same surface where you worked the dough, assemble the empanadas.*
*you may want to take out the doughs in a few batches as you work, the dough is easier to work with when it is cold.
Place a spoonful of sautèed mixture at the centre of each discs.**
**take care NOT to overstuff it, you should be able to comfortably fold the disc in half and enough room to fold over the edge without struggle.
Fold the disc in half, and fold over the outer edge (up to 1cm) and secure it by pressing, using a fork.
Place the formed empanadas on a baking sheet (or on a few of them), bake them for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
They are equally good hot/warm or at room temperature.

Savoury Mushroom-Cheese Strudel

I improvised this recipe the other day when I defrosted a sheet of puff pastry meaning to make a quiche, then realizing too late I only had 1 egg left. :-( Thank god puff pastry is so versatile, and I jumped on the opportunity to use up some left over mushrooms and brie still left in the fridge. This turned out to be a yummy hit, and it will surely turn into a proper repartoire when an occasion calls for a quick snack or a hors d'oeuvres!!


Savoury mushroom-cheese strudel

Ingredients
250g mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped
2 slices of speck or english style bacon (optional)
dash of herbs provençal
butter, just enough to sautè the above items
1/2 tsp granulated (powdered) vegetable bouillon
dash of pepper
150g brie, chopped (or your choice of cheese)
generous handful of parsley, chopped
1 sheet of puff pastry (about 300g)

Melt the butter in a skillet and prepare the sautè mixture, starting with onion.
When onion starts to soften, add mushrooms, garlic, speck/bacon, and the seasonings. Continue to cook on high heat stirring well, until onions and mushrooms are completely tender.
Just before turning off the heat, add the parsley.
Let it stand to chill to the room temperature.*
(*if the mixture is too warm it will soften the pastry dough immediately, and it will be difficult to flip over in the process.)
Roll out the puff pastry dough, flatten it to about 3mm thickness if the sheet is thicker, spread it flat on a baking sheet.
Mix in chopped brie into the sautèed mixture, blend in evenly.
Arrange the filling on the surface of the pastry sheet across the centre, about 6-7 wide, leaving about 2cm each on both sides (so it can be secured).
Fold the pastry sheet in 3, folding over the both sides together, overlapping slightly at the centre.
Carefully flip over the strudel, so the seam side will be at the bottom. Press the opening edges on both sides gently with a fork to secure them.
Make a few diagonal slits on the surface with a sharp knife.
Bake the strudel in the oven at 200°C for about 10 minutes, or until the surface is thoroughly golden brown.
Let is stand to cool slightly to stabilize the texture before slicing up.

Stuffed Zucchini (Courgette) Flowers

This is a very popular antipasto (especially at a pizzerias) or tapa, delicate yet flavourful. Traditional recipes come with a piece of anchovy fillet along with mozzarella, I personally like it just with the cheese. Courgette flowers are sometimes sold with a baby courgette intact, in this case you can leave the courgette attached to the flower and cook altogether, just make sure to remove the stamen inside the flower.

Stuffed Zucchini Flowers (Campania, Lazio)

15 courgette flowers
100g, or as needed 50/50 flour/corn flour(maizena) mixture
2 eggs
cold water, as needed
200g fresh mozzarella
15 anchovy fillets (optional)
frying oil
Salt and black pepper to taste


Carefully eliminate the stamen from inside the courgette flowers and gently rinse the flowers, being careful not to break them.
Heat the oil* in a large frying pan (deep enough to let the flowers "swim") or an electric fryer to about 175°C.
*If you don't use a fryer or a thermometre, drop a small piece of bread in the pan to check the hotness of the oil. It should sizzle and turn golden within 40 seconds.

In a shallow bowl, beat the eggs with a little salt and pepper. Add the flower mixture and little by little, cold water. Mixing well and bring the batter to a smooth consistency, something like a crepe batter.
Slice the mozzarella into thin strips and pat dry the anchovy fillets to eliminate excess oil.
Fill each courgette flower with a strip of mozzarella, 1 anchovy fillet and mozzarella. Make sure the mozzarella will stay within the flower petal, not sticking outside. This way the petals will close themselves while being cooked, preventing mozzarella from oozing out.

Dip the stuffed flowers into the batter, coat thinly and evenly.
Gently slip the courgette flower into the oil, cook about 3 at a time. If you are using a fryer, do not place them in the raised basket as the batter will stick, drop the flowers directly in the oil and let it swim.
Fry for a couple of minutes on each side, until they turn golden.
Gently remove each flower with a slotted spoon and let them rest on an absorbent paper.
Serve immediately.

Herb Ricotta Bites

This is a very easy and simple snack/antipasto for an impressive result. A well esteemed friend of ours passed on this recipe to us, according to her this is a very antique Roman recipe, she translated it from a Latin text!
The dose of course can be multiplied as this would also make a great party nibble!!


fresh bayleaves (10-12 circa) or sage leaves (20 + or -)
1 tub (250g/8 oz) ricotta
about 50-60g freshly ground parmigiano, pecorino or grana padano
1 large tablespoon (heaped) of flour
1 tsp baking powder
dash of pepper

Rinse clean the herbs, pat dry.

Mix well the rest of ingredients in a bowl.

Arrange the leaves on a baking tray, and on each leaf drop a spoonful of the mixture, roughly making the shape to match the form of the leaves, in about 1cm thickness. Bake at 180°C about 12-15 minutes, or until golden.

Note: leaves are to be peeled off when they are eaten. In case of sage leaves though (which are much more tender than bayleaves), some people would happily eat them without any harm!

Caponata Siciliana

Caponata Siciliana (Sicilia)

Caponata is one of the most famous and delicious vegetarian treat coming out of Sicily. It is a perfect antipasto, tapa, light meal with a freshly baked crusty bread, or accompaniment for the main dishes when you have guests on a hot summer evening, as it can be prepared in advance, it tastes better after being rested for some hours and can be enjoyed at room temperature. Alternatively, you can use grilled bell peppers in place of aubergine, (or both!) equally tasty!

3 large but slender aubergines, cut into cubes
olive oil
1-1,5 onion, roughly chopped
1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed, drained and chopped
about 20 green olives, deseeded and chopped
2 tbsp white wine vinegar or apple vinegar
2 tbsp. sultanas, soaked in water for about half an hour
3 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 tbsp sugar
2 tablespoons pine nuts
salt (optional)
good quality extra virgine olive oil

Soak the aubergine chunks in a cold, salted water for at least 30 minutes, then drain, rinse well and pat dry.
In a large skillet fry the aubergine in a sufficient amount of olive oil. Gently shaking the pan now and then cook for about 4-5 minutes until the aubergines are nicely coloured. (Try not to overcrowd the skillet. If the skillet is not big enough, cook in two or more batches.) Set the aubergine aside on an absorbent paper.

Sautè the onion in just enough olive oil until onion becomes tender. Add the prepared capers, olive, oregano, pine nuts, sultanas, sautè for another couple of minutes.
Add the tomatoes and let it simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.
Dry roast the pine nuts in a stainless steel or cast iron skillet, or in the oven until lightly coloured (take care not to burn them!)
Add the pine nuts, aubergine chunks, parsley, vinegar and sugar, toss well and continue to cook until the vinegar is evaporated.

If needed add a little more salt/sugar to your preferred taste.
Ideally let the completed dish rest for a few hours to let the flavour bind together.

Drizzle good extre virgine olive oil and serve warm or room temperature.

Bacon & Prune antipasto

This is an incredibly simple yet tasty tapa/hors d'oeuvres, a perfect combination of sweet and savoury. The procedure will be even simpler if you can find a package of already deseeded prunes!!

16-20 (or more if desired) large dried prunes
8-10 thinly sliced strips of smoked bacon
tooth picks, the same number as the prunes
evoo

Deseed the prunes.
Cut each bacon strips in half.
wrap each prunes with a halved strip of bacon, secure it with a toothpick.
Repeat the procedure for every prune.
Fry the prune/bacon in a thin layer of evoo in a large skillet, until the bacon is golden and crisp.
Serve hot.

Classic Bruschetta

Bruschetta is one of the finest example of the delicious simplicity of the true Italian cooking!! This traditional Italian "antipasto" is not just for a starter, but also is a great snack or light meal which is really easy&quick to prepare... it is also a perfect variety for a barbeque cookout, throw on some slice of bread on the barbeque grill and dress it up as you go!
you can experiment with endless options of toppings, various grilled vegetables, cheeses, patè etc., but this is the most classic, most loved version, prepared with fresh ripe tomatoes and basil leaves, it does carry a wonderful summery flavour!

Large crusty loaf of bread
Garlic cloves, about half per slice
Tomatoes, ripe but firm, chopped. (Eliminate the seed if too soggy, but better with skins intact to maintain the texture.)
Good quality extra virgine olive oil
Fresh basil leaves, chopped*
salt, pepper

In case fresh basil leaves are not available, use crushed dry oregano.

Slice the bread, not too thinly, broil both side.
Cut the garlic cloves in half, put the sliced surface in contact with the broiled bread, still hot, and rub into it evenly.*
Pile the tomatoes on the slice, sprinkle with salt, pepper and basil leaves to taste.
Drizzle the olive oil over.
Serve immediately.

*Alternative preparation
For people who are disturbed by the strong aftertaste of raw garlic.
Roast the garlic in the oven and then mash it, or sautè the minced garlic in just enough olive oil, and sprinkle them over the toast evenly.

Veggie Briouats

Briouats originates in Morocco, but like other certain food the basic idea seems to be pretty global, it is quite similar to Indian Samosa, or Lumpia from Philippines and alike. It can be shaped in triangle like classic Samosa, but I went for the cigar shaped version as it is easier to form... :p The fillo is very delicate, so take care in its handling, keep it cool and dry, and also chill the filling completely. While rolling the briouats, if there are many of them put them in the fridge as you go! Slightly tedious procedure will be definitely paid off as they are absolutely delicious!! As you get the hang of it, you can experiment with different fillings, like cheeses or minces, or sweet version with nuts and dried fruits!!

1 packet of fillo pastry sheets (270g)
1 small courgette
1 small bell pepper
2-3 porcini mushroom*
1 medium carrot
1 small onion
1 spring onion
1-2 clove of garlic, crushed
salt & pepper
Olive oil
frying oil

*you can use a regular button mushrooms mixed with a small amount of soaked dried porcini (you can utilize the soaked liquid to flavour the vegetables), or substitute with shiitake.

1. (if bought frozen) take out the fillo sheets from the freezer at least half a day in advance (better the night before) and defrost in the refrigerator.
2. finely julienne all the vegetables.
3. sautè the vegetables in just enough hot olive oil with garlic. Start with onion, carrot, bell pepper, then courgette and mushrooms, spring onion goes last just to pass the heat. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Cool the vegetables completely, and let them rest in the refrigerator for about an hour.
5. take out the fillo sheets, carefully roll them out and slice them into about 20x15cm (approx., depending on the original size of the fillo sheets)
6. add about one tablespoon full of the vegetables on each sheet and make a thin line of it near the centre.
7. fold over the both sides of the fillo sheet, to keep the vegetables from falling out from the ends.
8. Roll up each sheet like a cigar.
9. Let it rest in the fridge again to chill.
10. Deep fry the rolls (a few at a time at the most, not too many) at about 175-180°C, until golden.

Serve piping hot, they are delicious by itself, or enjoyed with various sauces/condiments like mango (or other type) chatney, tahini, tzatziki, curry etc.