Chicken Empanadas and Mexican Chicken Spaghetti

So there’s nothing traditional about these empanadas.   In fact, I don’t know that I’ve ever had actual empanadas.  But when I got my new set of dough presses (which I bought for making dumplings), I knew I had to do something to try them out.  Empanadas seemed just the thing.  These make for a great appetizer.  Which is good, because they’re crack and you won’t be able to stop with just two (we aren’t going to talk about how many I had for breakfast).   And since I was totally making this up as I went, I wound up with WAAAAAY too much filling, so I ended up using the remainder, mixing it with some spaghetti for another dinner.  Delicious.  The empanadas are not gluten free, but it’s on my list to make them so.

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken thighs boneless
• 1 onion chopped
• 1/2 cup black beans
• 1 roasted red pepper, diced
• 1 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and finely diced
• 1/2 cup 2% fiesta blend cheese
• 8 oz neufchatel cheese
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp ancho chili powder
• 1/4 tsp coriander
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 package Sazon
• 1 package refrigerated pie crust (2 circles)
• 1 tsp olive oil

Directions:

1. Heat the oil over medium high heat.

2. Add the chicken and saute until no longer pink.

3. Add all the spices and veggies except the beans and saute for 5-10 minutes.

4. Add the sauteed mixture to the beans, neufchatel cheese, and fiesta blend cheese and stir until well combined.

5. Pop in the fridge to cool while you work with the dough.

6. Unroll the ready made pie crusts.

7. Using a 3″ dough press (or some other jar top or something that will give you a 3 inch round) cut out rounds of dough.

8. Squish together the remaining bits and roll them out and keep cutting until you’ve used all the dough.

9. Lay a round into the dough press and put in a spoonful of filling.

10. Press the empanada closed.

11. If you don’t have a dough press, just put the spoonfull in the middle and fold over, pinching closed with the tines of a fork.

12. Repeat with remaining rounds. I got 14 out of a package of 2 pie crusts.

13. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.

14. Now, you will notice you have a huge bowl of filling left. While your empanadas are cooking (or later if you want to), cook up 6-8 ounces of spaghetti and mix with the filling. Put into a casserole dish. Top with more Fiesta blend cheese.

15. once the empanadas are OUT of the oven, pop the casserole dish in and you’ve got some Mexican chicken spaghetti for another meal.

Printable version.

This steel magnolia is the poster child for successfully Doing All the Things, smart phone in one hand, sword in the other. Author of action-packed PR/UF for adults and teens. You can catch up with her at Pots and Plots, her blog, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.