Venezuelan Empanadas

Randal's dad used to own an Argentine steak house in Tulsa, and for as long as I have known Randal I have heard about the amazing empanadas they served there. We have tried to recreate them but were never able to get the dough right, until we found this recipe from the food network.  It is made with a very specific cornmeal that I was worried we wouldn't be able to find, as I have never looked for precooked cornmeal before, but we found it at our local HEB grocery store.  Randal changed the filling to ground beef as that is what his dad's empanadas had and for our first attempt at these they worked out really well.  We are planning on making these again soon, this time rolling the dough out a little thinner and I also want to try making banana empanadas, filling them with banana, brown sugar and cinnamon.
 

Filling:

1 lb ground beef

1/2 onion, finely diced

1/2 green bell pepper, finely diced

1 jalapeno, finely diced

1 packet taco seasoning

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1/4 cup water

For the dough:

3 tbsp sugar

1 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter

1 tbsp salt

3 1/2 cups precooked cornmeal (such as P.A.N. brand)

1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp all purpose flour

3 1/2 cups hot water

To make the filling, brown the ground beef in a large skillet, drain.  Add the onion, bell pepper and jalapeno, cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the water, taco seasoning and all the spices and cook for 10 minutes, leave to cool.

To make the dough mix the hot water, sugar, vegetable oil, butter and salt in a medium bowl until the butter melts. Stir in the cornmeal and flour until a soft dough forms, then knead until the dough comes together.

To form the empanadas, take 1/2 cup of dough and place between 2 pieces of cling film. Roll into a 7 inch circle and remove the top sheet of plastic and place 2 to 3 tablespoons filling in the center of the dough.  Fold the dough in half over the filling and press to seal. Trim into a half-moon shape and deep fry at 365 for 4 minutes, until golden brown.

Linked to: The Southern Institute, making the world cuter, Mom's Crazy Cooking, Marvelously Messy, A Southern Fairytale, Make Ahead Meals, All the small stuff, Blessed with Grace, 33 shades of green, Naptime Creations, Chef in training, It's a blog party, Reasons to skip the housework