Paleo Pockets (Empanadas)

I have not been feeling my best the last few weeks. And one side effect of my condition is that I am craving high flavor food more than ever. That is due partly to the fact that I haven't been able to taste food that isn't super savory and, of course, when I feel less than my best, I start looking for more of my favorite comfort foods.

But I have to remember, that on these days when I am feeling under the weather, I need good quality foods more than ever.

Enter these little beauties! They are based on the Fabulous Flat Bread recipe I shared a while back and a tried-and-true family recipe for the filling. These little treats are sure to satisfy whether you are craving comfort foods or just want a Tex-Mex taste to top off your day.


Paleo Pockets (a.k.a. Empanadas)

Stuff You Need:

• ½ cup almond flour
• ½ cup tapioca flour
• ½ cup milk + 1 Tbs milk
• salt (pinch)
• 1 lb ground beef
• ½ yellow onion, finely chopped
• yellow or orange bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded, finely chopped
• ½ cup raisins
• ¼ cup slivered almonds
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 2 Tbs butter or ghee, melted

What To Do:

1. Preheat your oven to 350F.
2. First we'll prepare our crust/tortillas... put the almond flour, tapioca flour, and salt in a bowl and combine, breaking up any clumps - I use a wire whisk for this, but a fork will work just as well.
3. Stir in the milk until it reaches the consistency of pancake batter, add more or use less as needed - different brands of almond flour may require a bit more or less depending on how finely it has been milled. You should end up with enough batter for 4 good sized tortillas.
4. Next, heat a nonstick pan over medium heat and pour ¼ of your batter into the pan. Swirl the pan around to thin out your tortilla to your desired size/thickness.
5. As soon as you are able, flip over your tortilla and brown the other side. You want your tortilla slightly under-cooked. We'll finish it off in the oven.
6. After all 4 tortillas are browned on both sides, set them aside until ready to fill.
7. Now to prepare the filling ... start by browning your ground beef until no pink remains.
8. Next, drain the beef to remove as much fat as possible and then return the mixture to the skillet.
9. Next you need to add the onions, bell pepper, and jalapeno to the pan. Saute with the beef until the onions are translucent.
10. Next, add the raisins and dry spices. Let the mixture cook for a couple of minutes, stirring often, to release the flavor of the spices.
11. Now we're ready to assemble our empanadas... place a tortilla on a parchment lined baking pan and fold in half.
12. Lift the tortilla and spoon about 2 - 3 Tbs of the meat mixture inside the fold. Use a fork to crimp the edges shut. Note: since the tortillas are under cooked, this is not difficult and should not require any binder to hold them together. If you run into trouble, you can brush a bit of the melted butter/ghee along the edges to help them stick together while crimping with the fork.
13. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.
14. Now you need to brush the tops of your empanadas with the melted butter/ghee.
15. Bake at 350F for 10-15 minutes, until tortillas finish cooking. They will have a nice golden color once they are done.
16. Serve with salsa and ENJOY!

You will note that you will have a LOT of left over meat mixture. This makes for FABULOUS left overs. You can always make more empanadas (& I highly recommend that you do so), but this filling is also great along side fried eggs for breakfast, wrapped up in butter lettuce, or topping a killer taco salad! You really can't go wrong with it! This also freezes well so you can always have some when you need a quick week-night meal.

You can fill your empanadas with just about any filling that suits your fancy. The first night we tried these, I filled them with my Crock Pot Carnitas. If you are not strict Paleo, these would be AWESOME stuffed with melted cheese and onions. MMMMMMM I start drool just thinking about it. And there are sweet fillings as well - think apple pie kind of fillings. I haven't tried this yet, but you can bet I'll be back to update the site once I do!

I hope you will enjoy these as much as we have. They have become an instant favorite and they are so flexible and offer so many different options, depending on how you are feeling on any given day. It doesn't get much better than that.