Chorizo and Potato Stuffed Empanadas with Avocado Cilantro Sour Cream

Happy Monday everyone!  Hope you all had a nice weekend.  They just fly by so fast, don't they?  We didn't do much.  Actually, other than a few errands, we barely left the house... and there was a reason for that.  Two words.  Walking Dead.  

AMC has been replaying all of the Walking Dead episodes.  We taped all of them and have been working our way through the series starting with the very first episode.  This show is nuts!  Can you imagine living in a world filled with "Walkers"?  It's so scary that sometimes I have to watch an episode of The Big Bang Theory before I go to bed.  You know, so I don't have bad dreams.  I'm a baby like that.  

I'm such a sucker for a good television series.  Dexter, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad and Girls are just a few of my favorites.  It's even better when you have them taped or rented and you can just have a marathon and move right through them.  What are some of your must-see shows? 

While being lazy bums, I finally got around to writing this recipe for these empanadas that I made for the Super Bowl party we went to last weekend at our friends Rachel and Chris's house.  I just love chorizo and it is even better wrapped up in this flaky pastry dough with some ooey-gooey cheese.  They are time consuming but worth every minute.   

I like to get the potatoes started before the dough.  Remember to always cover the potatoes with cold water so they can cook evenly.

They are done when you insert a knife into the center, and it pulls out with no resistance

When making the dough, put the flour in first.  Cut the butter into small pieces then tear off small chunks of cream cheese.

After you pulse a few times, the mixture will resemble small peas.   Add the egg yolk and water.

Pulse a few more times and once it pulls away from the sides, it is ready.  Add more flour or cold water if needed.

Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead a few times to bring it together.

There's your disc of dough.  Wrap with plastic wrap and throw it in the fridge.  If doubling the dough (which you will need to do to use all of the filling),  repeat these steps again.  I do not suggest doubling the recipe because the food processor will get pretty crowded.

Make sure you get raw chorizo.

Take it out of the casing and brown.

Remove from pan then drain.

Prepare the veggies.

Throw them in the pan and saute.

Then add chorizo and potatoes back and mix.

Add seasoning...

Then cilantro.

Any cheese that melts well will pair nicely.

Prepare the rolling/stuffing station.

You want the dough about 1/4 inch thick.

I used a 3 inch round cookie cutter.  The top of a mug or large drinking glass would work as well.  You want them to be big enough to stuff.

Add the filling, cheese then brush edges with egg wash.

Fold over and pinch to seal edges.

Place on pan and brush with egg wash.

I prick a small hole on top with the tip of a knife so steam can release. I also dust with a a little kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Mash avocado and make the sour cream dipping sauce.

Chorizo and Potato Stuffed Empanadas with Avocado Cilantro Sour Cream
makes about 48 empanadas, if dough recipe is doubled

Dough
*you can also use puff pastry but this dough is amazing... and easy to make
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
pinch of salt (I use kosher)
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into pea size pieces
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 egg yolk
2-4 tablespoons ice cold water

**Note**
I  ended up doubling this recipe as I had a lot more filling to use.  If doubling, make in 2 individual batches because you don't want to over crowd the food processor.  

If you don't have the energy to double the recipe, freeze the left over filling.  It would be great as a topping for a quick pizza or to toss with a pasta. 

Add the flour and salt into a food processor.  Cut butter into small pieces and place on top of flour. Using your hands, pinch off pieces of the cream cheese and add to flour until all 8 ounces is gone. Pulse about 5 times until the butter and cream cheese is mixed into the flour and the mixture resembles small peas.

Add egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of water and pulse 2-4 more times.  You want the mixture to form a ball of dough, pulling away from the sides. If the mixture is dry, add 1 tablespoon at a time and pule until the ball of dough forms.

Remove from the bowl and place onto a floured surface.  Knead a few times to create a smooth dough.  Don't over work this dough.  Work it as little as possible.  Form it into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until ready to roll.

Filling
4 small potatoes, peeled and cut into even chunks
1 pound uncooked chorizo
1 small onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 jalapeno (optional), minced
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2-3 tablespoons cilantro, roughly chopped

Peel potatoes and chop into large chunks.  Place in a medium sauce pan and cover with cold water.  Place pan on stove and turn heat up to medium-high.  Boil potatoes for 20 minutes, or until when you insert a knife into the center of a chunk and can remove it with no resistance.  Drain potatoes and set aside to cool.

Preheat large saute pan over medium heat.  Prepare/chop all vegetables.  Remove chorizo from casing and place into preheated pan.  With a wooden spoon, break up the meat and work it until fully cooked.  Remove from pan and drain on a paper towel lined plate.

Add onion, garlic, and jalapeno to the pan.  Cook until vegetables are soft.  Turn off heat.

Break up the potatoes by roughly chopping them and add them back to vegetables along with the meat.  Add paprika, oregano, salt, pepper and cilantro.  Once everything is mixed together, the filling is ready.

Assembly
dough
filling
shredded cheese ( I used Chihuahua but Jack or Cheddar would work as well)
1 egg, beaten with 2 tablespoons of water

Preheat oven to 385 degrees and line cookie sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.  Remove dough from refrigerator and cut disc into quarters.  Using one quarter of the dough, roll out onto a heavily floured surface until about 1/4 inch thick.  With a round cookie cutter (about 3 inches), cut rounds out of the dough.

Fill with 1 tablespoon of chorizo mixture and a heavy pinch of cheese.  Brush edges with egg, fold dough over and press edges to seal.  Prick a small hole in the top of the empanada with the tip of a knife to let steam escape.  Once sheet is full of empanadas, brush them all with the egg wash, sprinkle on some salt and pepper and place in a 385 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and puffed up.  

Avocado Cilantro Sour Cream
1/2 avocado, mashed with a fork
1 cup sour cream
1/2 lime, juiced
1/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
pinch of each salt and pepper

In a bowl, mash half of and avocado with a fork.  Add sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper.  Mix until combined.

Serve as a dipping sauce for the empanadas.