2 cloves Garlic

1/2 Onion (diced)

2 T Olive Oil or butter

2 lbs (or more if prefer)of Beef Tenderloin (you may use other type of meat)- cut into chunks

Salt and pepper to taste

2 (8 ounce) cans of Tomato Sauce

1/2 measure of tomato sauce can of Water

1 can Sliced Mushroom (optional)

2 T Worcestershire sauce

1 T ketchup

1 t mustard

Green Onion and parsley (to taste)

1 can Table Cream

In a sauce pan, add oil, onion and garlic.  Saute until onion is translucent.  Add beef chunks, salt and pepper.  Let it cook.  Then add tomato sauce, water, mushrooms,  Worcestershire sauce, ketchup and mustard .  Simmer for 20-30 minutes.

Add and green onions and parsley.  Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Turn off the heat and add the table cream.

Mix well and it is done!

In Brazil we serve Beef Stroganoff  with rice and batata palha. (thin potato chips).  If I don’t have any batata palha take some Ruffles Chips and smash it a little. Sprinkle on top 😀

Enjoy!

I have also found this at my local Smiths Grocery Store!!! These are a little thicker than the ones in Brasil.

This is an easy, fast and simple dinner idea. I like it because it can be made with leftover  chicken , shrimp, shredded beef from a leftover roast and etc. Boiled shredded chicken (2 big boneless chicken thie or breast) chicken breast will be lower in fat, but you also loose a little bit of flavor and moistness.  I like to boil the chicken with water and 1-2 T of chicken bouillon.  You will use this water/broth latter to cook the risotto 1/4 onion diced 1 t garlic 1 T butter 1 cup arborio rice Chicken broth/water Salt Pepper Peas Sautee the onion, garlic and butter. Add rice.  Sautee until rice is transparent.  Season with satl and pepper. Add broth little by litte. About 1/4 cup at the time and stir until rice is cooked.  Adjust seasoning and cooked chicken and peas.  Serve with shaved parmesan

We came across this cut of meat and I had to come up with a recipe. It is super easy and fast to make. You can serve it as a main dish or cut in small portions for appetizers.  Just ask your butcher to cut the short ribs in a long but thin strips (almost as thin as thick bacon)

Make the marinade:

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 c olive oil

3 T soy sauce

A good chunk of fresh Ginger (finely shredded)

Mix inside of a zip lock bag and add the slices of meat (about 12 slices or as much as the bag can hold)

Marinate about 1 hr

Put on top of wired sheet at 500 F  (or on broil) for 5 minutes each side.   Watch it closely, since the meat is so thin and the oven is super hot it cooks fast. It may also make a little bit of smoke because of the sugar in the marinade.

Sprinkle parsley on top (optional)

It is getting cold…. I love to see the pumpkin and all sorts of winter vegetables out.  I usually make this recipe a couple of times, and it is a fun one to make for Halloween, because it cooks inside the pumpkin .  If you can, go to a pumpkin patch and try to find the Cinderella Pumpkin . It is orange and kind of flat.  This type is the one that is most comparable to the one we use in Brasil.  If you are not able to find it, any other pie pumpkin would work. Or as you can see in the picture I used a Kabocha Pumpkin. It has a stronger taste, but still delicious.

For this recipe you will want to “clean” your pumpkin first.  So grab a sharp knife and get to work.  Open a hole on top and of the pumpkin, clean out the seeds and goop.  Then wrap it in foil and bake inside a baking dish with a little bit of water until the inside of the pumpkin is soft.  It will take about 45 minutes, depending on the size of your pumpkin

Take it out of oven and scoop some of the pumpkin meat out.  Reserve.

Now you want to cover the sides of the pumpkin with cheese. I have used a mixture of catupiry and mozzarella cheeses. After the entire sides and bottom has a nice layer of cheese, then fill with the mixture (recipe bellow).  Then add a little cheese on top (for taste, haha) and bake it again until bubbly.

Here is a picture of it done.

For the inside mixture:

2 lbs of shrimp (it may take more depending on the size of your pumpkin). I usually go more than less, since we like shrimp here! (this can also be done with chicken or meat)

1-2 T olive oil

2 t garlic (crushed)

1/2 medium onion (diced)

3-4 large tomatoes (diced, no seeds or skin)

1 (8oz) can tomato sauce

2 T butter

Salt and Pepper to taste

About 1 cup or more of the baked pumpkin meat (reserved from preparing the pumpkin)

1 can of creme de leite (table cream)

In a large sauce pan, sautee the garlic and onions in the olive oil.  Add shrimp, cook a little bit, then add tomatoes, tomato sauce, butter and seasonings.  Let it cook. It will make a sauce. If necessary add a little water.  After sauce is done, add the pureed pumpkin meat and the table cream.  Pour this mixture into your pumpkin.

ps: if you prefer, you can make the sauce first and then add the shrimp last. This will prevent overcooking the shrimp.  Still sautee them and season to taste. Then add to the creamy tomato sauce 😉

Patri of the blog, Asi Son Los Cosas, was our September 2012 Daring Bakers’ hostess and she decided to tempt us with one of her family’s favorite recipes for Empanadas!  We were given two dough recipes to choose from and encouraged to fill our Empanadas as creatively as we wished!

5-1/3 cups bread flour

2 cups of lukewarm water

1 tablespoon dry yeast or  (1 oz) fresh yeast

2 teaspoons salt

4 tablespoons  oil (you can use oil from the pan where you have cooked the filling)

1 large egg, for egg wash

Directions:

Shift the flour into a big bowl and make a well in the middle. Rub the yeast in with your fingers. In a small bowl, mix the water and the salt.

Now, using your fingers or a wooden spoon, start adding the water and mixing it with the flour-yeast mixture. Keep on working with your fingers or spoon until you have added enough water and all the flour has been incorporated and you have a messy ball of dough.

On a clean counter top, knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes

You could do all the above using a stand mixer, in that case mix the ingredients with the paddle attachment until mixed and then switch to a dough hook and knead on low for about 6 minutes.

Clean and oil the big bowl you used for mixing and place the kneaded dough in it. Cover it with a napkin or piece of linen and keep it in a warm, draught-free place for approximately 40 to 50 minutes.

Once risen, turn the dough back into a floured counter and cut it in half. Cover one half with the napkin to prevent drying.

Spread the other half of the dough using a rolling pin. You can use a piece of wax paper over the counter, it will make it easier to move the dough around. Depending on the shape of your oven pan or cookie sheet, you will make a rectangle or a round.

Now, the thinness of the dough will depend on your choice of filling and how much bread you like in every bite.  For your first time, make it about 3mm thin (about 1/10th of an inch) and then adjust from that in the next ones you make.

Assembling the empanada:

If you haven’t used wax paper, either lightly flour or line with wax paper your pan or tray.

Cover the base and sides with the dough. Using the rolling pin or a knife, cut the extra dough.

Place the filling, making sure it is cold and that all the base is covered. Using a hot filling will make the bottom layer of the empanada become soggy. Be careful to avoid adding too much oil from the filling, try to make it as “dry” as possible.

Start preheating your oven to moderate 350°F.

Take the other half of the dough and spread it out to the same or less thinness of the base. You can use a piece of wax paper for this too. Take into account that this “top” dough needs to be smaller around than the bottom, as it only needs to cover the filling.

If not using wax paper, move carefully the top to cover the filling. If using wax paper, transfer the dough, turn upside down, cover the filling and gently peel off the wax paper.

Using your fingers, join bottom and top dough, when you have gone all the way around, start pinching top and bottom together with your thumb and index finger and turning them half way in, that way you end up with a rope-like border. As a picture is worth a thousand words, please watch this video to see how it is done.

When you are finished, make a 1 inch hole in the middle of the top layer. This will help hot air exit the empanada while it’s baking without breaking the cover.

You can use left-over dough to decorate the empanada, using rounds, bows, lines… let your imagination flow and make it pretty!

Using a fork, prick the top layer or, using scissors, make snips that go all the way through the top layer

In a small bowl, beat an egg and add a tbsp of cold water. With the pastry brush, paint the top of the empanada with the egg wash.

Place the empanada in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes. Check that the bottom part is done.

I used a chicken and catupiry filling. Recipe here: Creamy Chicken

Other possible fillings:

Cod

400 gm (14 oz) chopped onion (approximately 1 big onion or 2 medium-sized ones) 2 garlic cloves ¾ cup (180 ml) Olive oil 300 gm (10½ oz) salted cod, washed and cleaned (you put it in fresh water 24 hours before, change the water four times) 100 gm (3½ oz) raisins 100 gm (3½ oz) cured ham or bacon (not smoked) A few strands of saffron

• When vegetables are cooked, turn off the heat. Add the saffron and the raisins. Cut cod and ham (or bacon) in less than bite sized pieces, and add. Stir everything together.
• Add salt as needed (we do this at the end because the amount of salt will depend on how salty your fish remains after the unsalting and how salty your cured ham or bacon is).
• Allow to cool for at least half an hour before filling the empanada.

Filling Directions:

1. Finely chop the onion and garlic.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet and add the onion and garlic, fry over medium heat until the onion is transparent (you do not want the onion to brown at all).

Tuna fish filling:

Ingredients

400 gm (14 oz) chopped onion (approximately 1 big onion or 2 medium-sized ones) 200 gm (7 oz) tomatoes (peeled and seeded) 1 small red pepper 2 garlic cloves ¾ cup (180 ml) olive oil 1 can (6.5 – 7 oz / 180 gm – 200 gm) of tuna fish in oil, drained 1 hard-boiled egg 1 teaspoon sweet paprika (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a skillet
2. Fry the finely chopped onions, pepper and garlic until the vegetables are soft. Add then the tomatoes, chopped small, and cook until done.
3. Turn off heat and add the tuna fish and hard boiled egg, cut into less than bite sized pieces.
4. If adding the paprika, do so now and stir into the frittata.
5. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes.

Ground meat filling:

Ingredients

400 gm (14 oz) chopped onion (approximately 1 big onion or 2 medium-sized ones) 200 gm (7 oz) tomatoes (peeled and seeded) 1 small green pepper 2 garlic cloves ¾ cup (180 ml) olive oil 300 grams (2/3 pound or 10.5 ounces) minced (ground) meat 1 teaspoon sweet paprika

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a skillet
2. Fry the finely chopped onions, pepper and garlic until the vegetables are soft. Add then the tomatoes, chopped small, and cook until done.
3. Add the meat and cook for about 5 minutes.
4. Add the paprika, and stir into the frittata.
5. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes.
6. Fill the empanada en bake as indicated.

Ham and cheese filling:

Ingredients

10½ oz (300 gm) ham 10½ oz (300 gm) cheddar type cheese (any sandwich cheese will do)

Directions:

1. This is the simplest of fillings. You only need to layer prettily the ingredients, starting and ending with ham, to keep the melted cheese inside.

Pork loin and red pepper filling:

Ingredients

10½ oz (300 gm) pork loin (one piece) 1 big red pepper (capsicum) , cut into thin slices 1 small onion, cut into thin slices 2 garlic cloves 1 tablespoon (15 ml) (6 gm) paprika ½  tablespoon (3 ml) dried oregano salt

Directions:

1. 24 hours in advance, marinate the pork loin: for this, mix the oregano, paprika and the garlic cloves (very finely chopped) with salt to taste. Rub this marinade all around the meat, put into a sealable plastic bag and keep in the fridge for 24 hours.
2. Take the meat out of the bag and cut into thin fillets (about 0,5mm)
3. Cover the bottom part of the empanada with the fillets
4. Cover the fillets with the slices of onion and pepper. Sprinkle salt on top.
5. Cover the empanada and bake in a preheated oven to moderate 350°F/180ºC/gas mark 4. As this empanada starts with all raw ingredients, it will take about 15 minutes longer to bake. Just check that the underside of the empanada is golden. If it is, it’s cooked. If it isn’t, put it in the oven again and check after 10 minutes.

Get creative!!

For the creamy chicken recipe, you will first need to make my basic shredded chicken recipe. Here it is:

Basic Shredded chicken:

3 big boneless chicken thigh

water to cover

2 T chicken boiullon

Boil until chicken is cooked and tender.  Check and adjust for salt and seasonings while boiling it.  Shred and reserve.

*you can use chicken breasts. Just remember you will loose a little bit of the flavor and moistness by using the chicken breasts.  Sometimes I like to use both breasts and thighs.

This recipe is something I love to make, because I can make a big batch and use it in other recipes.  All you do is change the seasonings and you create a entire new dish with the same basic ingredients (boiled shredded chicken) 😉  It is also easy for busy parents to freeze individual or family portions of the basic chicken and then use it on busy days.

I also like to strain and keep the water  you used to boil the chicken.  This is chicken broth and can be used to enhance the flavor in rice dishes, risotto, coxinhas and many other dishes.  I also like to substitute chicken broth in recipes that call for wine.

Now, for the creamy chicken

1 recipe of basic shredded chicken

1/2 onion diced

2 cloves of garlic smashed

2 T oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 or 2 tomato diced (no seeds)

1/2 cup of catupiry cheese – I LOVE this cheese 😉 wink wink

1 T sliced green onions

1 T parsley

Other optional things you can add: sliced palm hearts, corn, peas, olives, bacon, etc.

Sautte the onions and garlic in the oil.  Add the chicken, salt, pepper, tomatoes and cook for a little while. Taste for seasonings and adjust if necessary.  Add the catupiry cheese, green onions and parsley.

I like to use this chicken for pie fillings, or served with rice or your favorite pasta.  It is also good served with a nice salad 😉 Enjoy

This is a light breaded coating. Usually people use beer to make the batter. I wanted to try it with soda. You may choose a ginger ale, sprite or seven up! Enjoy

For the batter:

2 egg yolks
1/2 c soda (ginger ale, sprite or seven up)
1/2 c flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 -1 t cayenne pepper (depending how spicy you may like it)

Mix is all together. Dry the fish fillets (I used cod, but tilapia would work very well) using a paper towel. Salt and pepper both sides, then dip them into the soda mixture.

Fry each fillet for about 3-4 minutes each side.

Cake for dinner? I wish, but not today. A classic April Fool’s Day, meatloaf cake.

For the meat loaf recipe click here: Brazilian Meat Loaf

For the cake. I used an 8 inch cake pan. Arranged 2 pieces of bacon around it. Lining the bottom and sides of pan. Then pressed some of the ground beef (like a big hamburger patty) on the bottom and a thin layer to the sides.

Added the filling: ham, cheese, boiled egg and carrots.

Covered with another layer of ground beef (thin)

2nd Filling: Salami and Cheese

Another layer of ground beef

Filling: Ham, cheese, boiled egg and carrots

Finally the last layer of ground beef.

Bake at 375 for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. When done I “frosted” it with mashed potatoes 😀

It was a fun dinner!

2 cups cooked pumpkin (I baked the pumpkin, then scrapped the meaty part out)

1/2-1 c flour

1 egg

1 T butter

salt and pepper

Mix ingredients adding flour little by little until desired consistency.  You want the dough to be soft but able to holds its shape.

Divide the dough into 4 and roll it into long snake like strand. Cut into small rectangles.

Using a fork or a Gnocchi maker, indent the gnocchi.  Press gently while rolling it off the fork.

You may freeze them on a cookie sheet then transfer to a Ziploc bag.  When ready, fresh or frozen, boil water with a little salt and drizzle of olive oil. Drop gnocchi into boiling water. (not all at the same time. I usually do about 6-10 at a time) Wait until they surface. About 4 minutes.  Drain the gnocchi and once finished serve with your favorite sauce.  For the picture below I use about 2 T of butter in a frying pan, and as the gnocchi were coming out of the boiling water I would drop them in to the frying pan.  Then I served it with shredded cheese, crispy bacon and fresh basil. Simple and delicious!

6-8 tilapia fillets

4 T butter

5 T lemon juice (separate)

salt and pepper

1 c mayo

1/2 c Parmesan

Rinse and dry tilapia fillets.  Salt and pepper both sides.  In a casserole dish. Add half of the butter.  Then layer it with the fish.  Top each fish with rest of the butter and  2 T lemon juice.

Bake it at 350 for about 10 minutes. Turn fillets and bake for another 10 minutes.

Mix the mayo, 3 T lemon juice and Parmesan together. Top each fillet with this mixture.  Broil until top is golden brown.