Holidays, sun… empanadas! Anyone who has ever enjoyed these popular Spanish treats will be in a summer mood just thinking about it. So why not plan a Spanish evening at home and enjoy your favorite meal from your holiday with all your senses on your own terrace? We show how a little break from everyday life can be achieved with tasty vegetarian empanadas.
Spanish empanadas with potato filling and tomato salad
Translated from Spanish, empanadas means something like “wrapped”. And the name says it all, because a wide variety of fillings are packed in a delicious dough. Classic empanadas often contain minced meat, but there is also a vegetarian version. For example with a potato and cheese filling. Together with an “ensalada de tomate”, a tomato salad, you are guaranteed to get that holiday feeling on the table.
Spanish empanadas with potato and cheese filling and tomato salad
Ingredients for 10 to 15 pieces:
For the dough:
500 g flour
1 cube of fresh yeast
300 ml milk
8 tbsp olive oil
About 2 teaspoons salt
For the filling:
400 g boiled waxy potatoes
200 g crème frache
250 g grated Emmentaler
Salt/pepper
Some nutmeg
For the tomato salad:
500 g tomatoes
1 hot pepper
1 to 2 garlic cloves
1⁄2 lemon, its juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1⁄2 tsp sugar
Salt/pepper
Preparation:
Crumble the yeast for the dough and mix it with the lukewarm milk in a large bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes and then add olive oil, flour and salt. Knead everything into a smooth dough – it should no longer stick, add a little more flour if necessary.
Cover the dough with a clean tea towel and let it rise. Two hours is ideal.
For the tomato salad, wash the tomatoes and cut them into very small cubes, as well as the peppers. Chop the garlic very finely or press it through a press, mix with olive oil and the juice of half a lemon. Season the ingredients with salt, pepper and sugar, add the diced tomatoes and mix well. The salad should then sit a little longer.
For the filling, cut the boiled potatoes into small cubes, add cheese and crème frache, season with salt, pepper and a little nutmeg and mix well.
Heat preheat the oven to 200 °C.
Fill the dough:
Knead the risen dough well on a floured work surface and then roll it out thinly.
Cut out circles with a diameter of about 12 centimeters with a bowl or a tray. Spread some of the potato and cheese filling on half of the circles, leaving some space around the edge.
Now fold over the side without filling and “seal” the edges with a fork. Bake the filled empanadas for about 20 minutes and serve them warm with the tomato salad.
Extra tip: Brushed with a beaten egg, the empanadas get a nice shiny and brown surface.
