Let me tell you about these little gems – they are delicious. Absolutely divine.
I could go on and on for a LONG time about how amazing they are.. but I’ll just make you hungry, and then I’ll get hungry, and then we’ll ALL be hungry – right?!
If anyone would have told me a few years ago that I could make Empanadas without flour, I would have looked at them sideways. Empanadas are one of our kids favorite things to eat ~ unfortunately I don’t make them all that often… They are delicious, but they also require quite a bit of butter and flour – and when cutting back on our flour/grains is our goal, then Empanadas don’t really fit in too well.
I came across a wonderful recipe for Paleo Empanadas and thought I’d give it a try – I really did have my doubts that they would turn out.
When it comes to Almond and Tapioca Flour, baking/cooking is a smidge different. Not only do you have to have patience to mess around to try to get things to work out, you also run the risk of the rest of the family being openly aware that you are taking a different approach to food…
It has to taste good in order for everyone to eat it. When you have 6 other people in the house, that’s a lot of people to please.
The funny part is.. these little delicious gems disappeared within 5 minutes after coming out of the oven. They really did. I can’t say I was surprised… they were just that good!
So good in fact that my 3 oldest ate all but one that they saved for Dad… then asked me if I could double the recipe the next day so they could eat them for dinner again. How’s that for success?!
Unlike fried empanadas, these empanadas start with a crepe-like batter ~ to get the circles perfectly round, I used 2 wide metal ball canning jar lids, and set each of them in a regular skillet that was lightly wiped with extra virgin olive oil.
I poured the batter in each, made sure to jiggle the pan a bit to spread that batter in the “lid” to make a nice crepe and then I gave it a little second to firm up. Not too firm… but firm enough so that the top of each circle is a little gummy, and the bottom was golden brown.
I gently lifted the canning jar lid with a tongs (it’s hot!), set them aside, then took a nice spatula to move the crepe-like pastry to the cookie sheet. I repeated this a few times until I had used my batter… then I filled each one up with the potato & meat mixture, folded the top over, sealed the edges with my fingers to make a little pouch and in the oven they went.
They are so good!
We kept the meat simple with a little pastured ground beef, potatoes and some seasoning – but if you prefer, you can include a little chorizo with your beef and season with some herbs and spices.
- 1/2 C. tapioca flour
- 1/2 C. almond flour
- 1 C. milk, preferably full fat (full fat coconut milk will also work)
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 2 yukon gold potatoes, peeled, steamed and diced small
- 1 Tbsp soy-free worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp butter, softened
- salt and pepper to taste
- Start by browning the ground beef and seasoning with salt & pepper to taste.
- Combine the onion, and diced potatoes with the ground beef and saute until cooked well. Set aside and prepare the pastry.
- Combine the almond, tapioca flour and milk and mix well until there are no lumps. Add a tiny bit of olive oil to your large skillet and set 2 wide mouth ball canning jar lids within the pan.
- Pour the batter in each of the lids as they act as a device to shape the rounds.
- Ensure that the batter is spread evenly in each - not too much but perhaps 1/8 - 1/4 of an inch.
- Allow the crepe to cook slightly on that one side - after about a minute or so on that one side, remove the canning rings, and use your spatula to transfer the round to a lined cookie sheet.
- Repeat to make more rounds - you should get anywhere from 8-10.
- Once all rounds are on the baking tray, add a small spoon of the meat and potato filling in the center of the round.
- Carefully fold over and push the edges to seal - use your a knife, a fork or your hands. A little tiny bit of butter can help if the edges won't stay together.
- Once they are all done, pop the tray(s) in the oven for 15 - 16 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy immediately as they will be crispy on the outside and savory on the inside.
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