Picadillo Empanadas

Empanadas are savory "turnovers" that are common as streetfood in Latin America and Mediterranean Europe. Common fillings include flaked fish, potato, fried and mashed banana, pork, shredded chicken, and, most commonly found in Cuba and Miami - picadillo. Picadillo is a ground beef hash that contains browned onions, garlic, red pepper, green olives, tomato sauce or paste, citrus juice (sour orange and lime, particularly), oregano, and, depending on the cook, some sweet elements. The first memorable picadillo I ate as a child contained cinnamon, so I add that, as well as chopped dates or raisins. Don't let the cinnamon and dates/raisins throw you off; picadillo is a decidedly savory dish. A little bit of sweetness will keep your guests asking what the secret ingredient to the dish is.

PICADILLO

Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef
2 large onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 red peppers, chopped
20 green olives, halved (the bottled Manzanilla variety is perfect)
1 sour orange
2 limes
10 dates, chopped
6 ounces tomato paste (or, alternatively, 10 ounces tomato sauce)
Oregano, to taste
Cinnamon, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste

Procedure:
(1) Brown onions in a large, deep pan with a bit of olive oil.
(2) Add minced garlic and peppers, and sautee for a few more minutes.
(3) Add ground beef, combine well with other ingredients, and cook until brown.
(4) Season with ground black pepper, cinnamon, and oregano.
(5) Add tomato paste or sauce and stir well to combine.
(6) Add olives to the pan, along with a splash or two of the brine in which the olives are bottled. If doing this, there is no need to add salt; the olives and brine are salty enough.
(7) Juice limes and sour orange over the pan; stir well to combine.
(8) Add chopped dates or raisins. At this point, you will notice that there is a bit of extra liquid and fat in the pan. Do not drain this; allow the meat the simmer on low for about 15 more minutes so that all of the excess liquid is absorbed into the hash.

EMPANADAS

Ingredients:
Empanada discs (usually sold in the frozen foods aisle by Goya or another Latin American brand) Oil for frying

Procedure:
(1) Make sure that empanada discs are thawed before you begin to assemble the actual empanadas. They thaw quickly; just remove them from the freezer as you start the filling for the empanadas and they should be ready once the filling is done.
(2) Heat approximately one inch of oil in a large pan. It is unnecessary to deep fry empanadas; shallow-frying and turning them over once is just as effective. Fry on one side until golden brown and then turn with tongs to achieve the same result on the other side. I usually fry 5-6 empanadas per batch. Keep in mind that once the oil is well-heated, empanadas will take only about a minute or less to fry on each side.
(3) Once done, remove from oil and place onto a plate covered with double-folded paper towls. Blot excess oil to ensure crispiness when serving.

Malta-Orange Braised Chicken over Sage-Parsnip Puree

What if I were to tell you that the secret ingredient to a deep, sophisticated sauce is a bitter and super-sweet soda than can be found in the Latin American aisle of your local grocery store for $0.50? Unlikely, yes, but sometimes unlikely ingredients used in a way to highlight their positives can bring a certain je ne sais quoi to a dish. The key to this sauce is a soda called malta, and is widely distributed around the US by the brands Goya and Hatuey. When used in cooking, malta imparts a rich, molasses flavor on whatever is braised in it as it reduces, and goes especially well with citrus and herbs. Here, I sear chicken thighs until golden and then braise them in a 50/50 mixture of malta and orange juice with a few generous pinches of sage and rosemary. I served the chicken over a parsnip puree infused with more sage, and together, this resulted in one of the best plates of food I've eaten in a while!

PARSNIP PUREE

Ingredients:
1.5 pounds parnsips
1 large (or 2 small) onion
1 bulb fennel
4 cups chicken stock
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Sage, chopped, to taste
Olive oil
2 tablespoons butter

Procedure:
(1) Chop onion and fennel. Sautee in olive oil for about 15 minutes.
(2) Cut parnsips into small chunks and add to pan along with salt, pepper, and sage.
(3) Sautee parnsips for about 10 minutes before adding chicken stock.
(4) Allow contents of pan to reach a boil, then simmer over low heat for about 10 more minutes.
(5) Add butter and allow to melt, then puree mixture with an immersion blender of standing blender.

MALTA-ORANGE BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS

Ingredients:
1.5 pounds chicken thighs
6 ounces malta soda
6 ounces orange juice (fresh-squeezed or bottled are both fine)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Sage, a few generous pinches, chopped
Rosemary, a few generous pinches, chopped
Orange zest, for garnish

Procedure:
(1) Liberally season chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
(2) Sear in olive oil until golden brown; flip and repeat on other side.
(3) Add malta and orange juice to pan along with chopped sage and rosemary.
(4) Allow sauce to reach a simmer and spoon it over chicken thighs every few minutes as it reduces. Once you add the liquid, allow meat to braise for about 15-20 minutes total.
(5) Incorporate some of the excess sauce into the parsnip puree. Serve chicken over puree, spoon extra sauce over top if desired, and garnish with orange zest and more chopped sage.