Finally! Successful Empanada & Chibureki Dough

This dough comes out flaky when deep fried; the surface is crispy and the inside is soft. Just perfect texture. Don't try anything else. This is it.

Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour (unbleached)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
3 tbsp oil/butter
3/4 to 1 cup of luke warm water (tap water is fine)

Method:
1. Mix the dry ingredients.
2. Mix in the oil thoroughly. It should be distributed throughout the flour.
3. Add 1/2 a cup of water and start mixing the flour. Depending on your flour, you could need between 3/4 to 1 cup of water. The dough should NOT be hard.
4. Let rest for 15 minutes.

Tip: When frying Empanadas or Chibureki, the oil has to be quite hot. All this time, I've been frying in oil that wasn't the right temperature. The oil must be so hot that the empanadas will colour in the oil after roughly 2 minutes of frying. That's quite hot!

That's it! Enjoy!

 

Easy Delicious Strawberry Pie

This has now become a staple in our menu.

Ingredients:
1 prepared pie crust, thawed
2-3 cups strawberries, fresh or frozen
2 tbsp lime juice
4 tbsp brown sugar or regular sugar
3 tbsp corn starch
1 package fat free cream cheese, room temperature

Method:
1. Prepare the pie crust as per package directions.
2. Place strawberries, 1 tbsp lime juice and sugar in a pot and set on medium-low heat. Cook for 20 minutes until it gets fairly thick.
3. Mix the cornstarch with 3 tbsp of cold water. Add to the strawberry mixture and stir till it thickens. Cool for 30-45 minutes.
3. In a separate bowl, add 1 tbsp of lime juice to the cream cheese, add 1 tsp of sugar and mix thoroughly.
4. Assemble: Take the pie shell. Spread the cream cheese on the pie. Top with strawberry mixture.

Place in refrigerator for 30 minutes at least. Makes 8 servings at least.

Enjoy!