Empanadas

Lisa Kalabokis
Kid-friendly
Entree
All seasons
"Green City Market's basic pizza dough can be used for making empanadas! Have leftovers hanging around the fridge that could use a little pizazz? Use whatever you have as filling! We love this recipe for this very reason—it’s totally versatile and uses up odds and ends in your refrigerator, creating a fun meal with zero waste."
-Lisa Kalabokis, Green City Market Head Chef Educator
Little Chef recipe involvement:
This recipe is great for all ages. From rolling, filling, crimping and egg washing, this recipe allows for kids to get their hands dirty in a variety of ways.
Download the full recipe + market shopping list.
Ingredients:
- Basic pizza dough
- Leftover fillings:
- Chili
- Roasted vegetables like peppers, potatoes, squash, greens
- Add any type of cheese for a gooey center
- Use frozen veggies if you don’t have fresh
- Pizza toppings (pepperoni, sausage, veggies, cheese)
- Dip in tomato sauce or spicy tomato soup
- Sloppy joes
- Taco filling
- If you have extra rice, you can add it here!
- Dip in salsa, hot sauce
- Beans like black, pinto, white, garbanzo
- Leave beans whole or puree for a creamy filling
- Sweet fillings like apples, jam, frozen berries
- Tip: sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top of empanada dough before baking for an extra sweet crunch
- 1 egg
- Water
Yield: 15-20 empanadas
Method:
- In a small bowl, crack egg and add a splash of water. Scramble with a fork and set aside as egg wash. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Fill another small bowl with water and set aside. This will be used to seal the empanadas, ensuring the filling will not ooze out.
- Liberally dust your work surface with flour and roll out prepared pizza dough to ¼ inch thickness. Cut approximately 5 inch rounds (use biscuit cutters, cup or can for this) from the dough and fill with approximately 1-2 tablespoons of filling, taking care not to overfill.
- Using a fork, gently press and seal the edges of the empanadas. If your fork sticks to the dough, simply dip it in a bit of flour and continue. Transfer to a baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick silicone mat.
- With a pastry brush, gently egg wash each empanada. Using a butter knife, make a small vent hole in the center of each empanada. This will allow steam to escape and prevent them from exploding while baking.
- Bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown. Remove from baking sheet and serve warm.
Hint: Don’t overfill your empanadas! Adding too much filling will cause your empanadas to explode in the oven.
Swap: Don’t have a pastry brush? No problem! You can use clean, washed fingers for a zero waste option. If that doesn’t work for you, a paper towel or coffee filter will also work!