VEGAN EMPANADA DOUGH RECIPE

Vegan Empanada Dough Recipe image

Provided by Shawn

Number Of Ingredients 6

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Ingredients

Ingredients
3 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening (I use Spectrum Vegetable Shortening which is organic, non-hydrogenated, from 100% Columbian palm oil - so no Orangutan issues), at room temperature
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
3/4 cups water

Steps:

In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add the shortening, using two knives to cut it into the flour until small pebbles form. Then add the apple cider vinegar and water, and use your hands to knead until you get a smooth, firm dough. Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic, and refrigerate for at least half an hour, ideally an hour or more. While the dough is chilling, prepare your empanada filling and preheat the oven to 400º F. Empanada fillings can be as diverse as your imagination allows! I've seen everything from spinach and pesto to pineapple and cinnamon. Savory, sweet, cheezy - it's really up to you. In this case, the empanadas were for the Winter Holiday Party, so I went with a seasonally appropriate roasted butternut, black beans, caramelized onions, and fresh scallions mix. I didn't measure anything so I don't have an exact recipe, but that's kind of the awesome thing about empanada filling. It's very forgiving! Just mix up whatever sounds good (next time I'm trying vegan chorizo plus roasted green chilis) and as long as the dough works, it's almost guaranteed to succeed. Once you have your filling, remove the dough ball from the fridge. Pinch off a large piece (maybe a quarter of the ball) and roll it out thin on a lightly floured surface. Then, use a cup or a small bowl to cut out round disks from the dough. Place one disk in your left (or "off" hand) palm, and spoon 1-3 tablespoons (depending on the size of the disk) into the center of the dough. Fold the disk in half to make a semi-circle pocket, using some water if necessary to seal the edge. There are two ways to seal an empanada: the easier way, "crimped" with a fork, and the more traditional way, called "repulgue." Repulgue is a technique of folding the dough over itself along the edge to make what looks like a two-strand braid. I figured I'd try it and even though it was my first time, I found it surprisingly quick and easy. There's a tutorial here if you want some guidance. Place the sealed empanadas on an unlined baking sheet. Poke each one with a fork to allow steam to escape, and brush the tops with water. Bake at 400º for 20 minutes, or until golden.