Description
These Organic Beef & Olive Picadillo Empanadas combine savory spiced ground beef with golden raisins and pepper jack cheese, wrapped in flaky pan-fried pizza dough. Served with a fresh side salad of baby lettuce and cucumber tossed in southwest dressing, this dish offers a delightful blend of sweet and savory flavors perfect for a satisfying meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Dough & Coating
- ½ cup flour
- 1 unit pizza dough
- Cooking oil (for frying)
Beef Picadillo Filling
- 10 ounces organic ground beef
- 1 unit onion
- 1 unit tomato
- 1 ounce golden raisins
- 1 unit green olives
- ½ cup pepper jack cheese
- 1 tablespoon fajita spice blend
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 unit beef stock concentrate
- Salt (to taste)
- Pepper (to taste)
Side Salad
- 1 unit baby lettuce
- 1 unit mini cucumber
- 1.5 ounces southwest dressing
- Salt (to taste)
- Pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Prepare Dough: Sprinkle 3 tablespoons flour over a clean work surface. Remove pizza dough from packaging and cut into four equal portions (or eight portions for 4 servings). Roll each piece in flour to lightly coat, shaking off any excess. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest at room temperature for 15 minutes. (Tip: For baking, preheat oven to 450 degrees and adjust rack to top position.)
- Prep Produce: While dough rests, wash and dry all produce. Halve, peel, and dice onion into ¼-inch pieces. Dice tomato into ¼-inch pieces. Roughly chop golden raisins and green olives.
- Cook Filling: Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, salt, and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add ground beef and cook, breaking up meat, until it starts to brown, 3-4 minutes. Stir in tomato, raisins, fajita spice blend, garlic powder, and beef stock concentrate; cook 1-2 minutes more until beef is cooked through. Drain excess grease if needed. Transfer mixture to a medium bowl and set aside. Wash and dry pan.
- Roll Dough Circles: After dough has rested 15 minutes, sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons flour over a clean surface. Roll each piece into a rough circle with a rolling pin. Set aside to rest for 10 more minutes.
- Prepare Salad: Trim and discard root end of baby lettuce, chop leaves into bite-size pieces. Trim and thinly slice mini cucumber into rounds. In a large bowl, combine lettuce, cucumber, southwest dressing, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat evenly.
- Mix Filling: Once beef mixture is mostly cool, stir in chopped olives and pepper jack cheese until well combined.
- Shape Empanadas: Stretch each dough circle to about 6 inches wide. Place ⅓ cup filling on one half, leaving a ½-inch border. Moisten edges with water, fold dough over filling, and gently press edges together. Seal edges by pressing with a fork, avoiding air pockets.
- Fry Empanadas: Heat a ⅓-inch layer of oil in the pan over medium heat. Test oil by sprinkling a pinch of flour; it should sizzle. Carefully add up to two empanadas at a time using a slotted spoon. Fry for 1-2 minutes per side until golden brown, lowering heat if they brown too quickly. Transfer to paper-towel-lined plate.
- Alternate Cooking Methods: For oven baking, place empanadas on a baking sheet and bake at 450 degrees on the top rack for 13-18 minutes until dough is browned and fully cooked. For air frying, spray empanadas with nonstick spray and air fry at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, turning halfway through; work in batches if needed.
- Serve: Divide empanadas and salad between plates and serve immediately.
Notes
- Use lean ground beef for a healthier option without sacrificing flavor.
- To avoid soggy empanadas, ensure excess grease is drained after cooking filling.
- If dough is too sticky while rolling, add a bit more flour to the surface.
- Baking or air frying are excellent alternatives to frying for a lighter dish.
- Ensure ground beef is cooked to an internal temperature of 160° for safety.
- Customize the filling by adding other dried fruits or substitute pepper jack cheese with another melty cheese if preferred.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 1120 kcal
- Sugar: 23 g
- Sodium: 1540 mg
- Fat: 63 g
- Saturated Fat: 18 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 40 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 95 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Protein: 46 g
- Cholesterol: 125 mg
