These baked Vegetarian Empanadas are a delicious finger food appetizer that your guests will love! Made with pie crust dough, they are simple, easy and super flaky! Serve with a side of sour cream and dip away!
What are empanadas?
Empanadas, hand pies or turnovers, are a popular Spanish or Latin-American pastry often served as an appetizer or dinner. They are shaped into rounds, stuffed with some type of filling and then folded into half-moons. You can bake them or fry them.
How to make empanadas using PIE DOUGH
This recipe is a vegetarian version that reminds me of mini burritos! I stuffed my empanadas with refried beans, cheese, corn, sour cream, green chilis and taco seasoning. They are so delicious and super creamy inside!
Because I use pie crust, these are not your traditional empanadas however they ARE very close. You’re probably wondering what’s the different between pie dough and empanadas dough right? Keep reading.
“What’s the difference between pie dough and empanadas dough?”
Your typical pie dough is made with flour, water and usually a type of fat like butter or shortening. That’s it.
Empanadas dough is traditionally made with flour (or corn flour), water, a fat, and an EGG. The egg is the main difference. Making your own homemade empanadas dough does not need to be complicated. If you have a food processor, it is actually very simple and can be done in less than 20 minutes!
Bite Sized Kitchen is all about quick and easy appetizers so, although I love homemade dough, I know we don’t always have the time to make our own at home. So if you don’t have time, using store-bought refrigerated pie crust is the perfect answer for flaky empanadas at home!
Tips:
Empanadas are not hard to make! Especially because I used pre-made pie crust, however there are a few tips that will take your empanadas to the next level:
- Use an egg wash! The egg in this recipe does THREE things! It helps to seal your empanadas together while giving them a nice shine AND helps them brown nicely. The extra time it takes to brush the egg on is worth it, trust me.
- Stuff those babies! Don’t be afraid to fill your empanadas up! You want the filling to dough ratio to be spot on. If the filling seeps out a bit while closing, that’s okay.
- Score the top! Scoring or slicing the top of your dough is not needed however I love the finished look. If you make multiple types of fillings, it will help your guests see what’s inside too!
- Seal them well. Use a fork and a flat surface to seal your empanadas well. You don’t want the filling to seep out once they’re in the oven.
Easy Vegetarian Empanadas (with Pie Crust)
Ingredients
- 7 oz. pie dough
- 1 egg scrambled
- ½ cup sour cream for dipping
Empanadas Filling
- ⅓ cup shredded Kraft Mexican Style Four Cheeses ((Monterey jack & cheddar works too))
- ¼ cup refried beans
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup canned corn
- 2 oz. canned green chilis
- 2 tbsp Old El Paso taco seasoning
- 1-2 tbsp freshly chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Whisk your egg in a bowl and set aside.
- Mix together your veggie filling in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Unroll your pie dough and use a 3½ inch biscuit or cookie cutter to cut out 8 rounds from your pie dough. Brush outer edge of each round lightly with your egg.
- Add about 1-1½ tbsp. of filling to each round and close in half. (You want to fill them up as much as you can.) Use a fork to seal the edges together. It's okay if some filling spills out.
- Cut 2-3 small slits in the top of empanadas and then brush more egg onto each one.
- Bake at 425°F for 10-12 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.
- Serve hot with sour cream.
Recipe Notes
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