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October 22, 2009
By Eileen Goltz

The old saying “you say tomato I say tomatoe” is never more true than in the foodie realm of stuffed dough pockets. In some cultures they’re called calzones, other empanadas or perhaps the word you prefer pierogi or in my world the bourekas.

Basically we’re talking about an all in one hand held meal or appetizer here. Perfect for any high holiday meal and especially delicious when eaten in the Sukkah. They’re typically small to medium pastries here, utilizing yeast dough, shortening dough, puff pastry or phyllo crust, kinda sorta resembling a turnover that can be filled with everything from potatoes to cheese and/or vegetable and/or meat and possibility a sauce.

To be more culture specific: Calzones are an Italian treat that literally translated to mean “baggy pants”. Dim Sum is a small oriental inspired turnover with seasoned mixtures of meat, fish, or vegetables. Then there’s the empanada, translated from Spanish, surprising no one, to mean; sandwich. Empanadas are sometimes filled with ground meat or sweet potatoes or fruit or raisins. Pasties hale from merry old England were, once upon a time, the favorite foods of the Cornish miners to take with down into the coal mines. Pirogues are filled pockets of dough, Polish in origin and are usually served as a side dish. Spanokopitas are light flaky Greek baked treat, typically made with phyllo dough filled with spinach, cottage cheese, feta cheese and olives. And last but not least there’s the bourekas (or borekas) Bourekas are an eastern European delicacy that have traditionally been shaped a specific way to indicate their filings.

So we’re all agreed, nothing beats a flaky, hot, freshly baked stuffed (fill in the blank here) except maybe eating the next one, or having one or two leftover for shalat shudas. I know, I know, too many possibilities, not enough recipes. Oh, wait, you will have recipes IF you just read a little bit further. Enjoy.





SIMPLE CALZONE (dairy)

SIMPLE CALZONE (dairy)

One batch frozen pizza dough
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup chopped/grated Mozzarella
1 cup grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper
Your choice of filling ingredients: 1 chopped onion, 1/2 cup chopped red pepper, 1 cup sliced mushrooms or 1 cup chopped cooked spinach.

Knead your dough on a floured surface for a few seconds, divide it into two pieces, form them into balls, and let them rest for 20 minutes under a towel.
Preheat your oven to 350. Drain your ricotta in a fine mesh strainer (or paper towel lined colander) for 10 minutes. Prepare the filling ingredients if pre-cooking is needed (i.e. saute the onion and pepper). Mix the three cheeses and your filling of choice ingredients in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Roll out your dough balls into 8 – 10″ circles with an even thickness. Letting them rest for a few minutes after first rolling them out will make it easier. Transfer the rounds to a piece of parchment paper. Add half the filling to each piece of dough. Maneuver the filling onto half of the dough, moisten the edges of each round with water, and then fold over the empty half of dough to enclose the filling. Press the edges closed. Bake the calzones on a cooking sheet or baking stone for 30 to 40 minutes until golden. Makes 2. Serves 4.


PHYLLO CHEESE POCKET (dairy)

1 egg, lightly beaten
1 bunch fresh parsley, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
6 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded
6 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded
12 sheets phyllo dough
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, melted

In a medium bowl, whisk together egg, parsley, garlic and crushed red pepper. Mix in the pepper jack and Swiss cheese. One sheet at a time, place phyllo dough on a flat surface and brush with about 1 tablespoon butter. Cut lengthwise into 4 strips. Place a rounded teaspoon of the egg mixture at one end of each strip. Fold corner of strip over the filling, forming a triangular fold. Continue folding the length of the strip in triangular folds to form a small stuffed triangle. Repeat with remaining phyllo dough. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly butter a large baking sheet. Arrange stuffed phyllo triangles in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes, or until lightly browned. Serve warm. Makes 16.


CHEESE AND SPINACH SPANOKOPITAS (dairy)

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach - thawed, drained dry
1 teaspoon salt
1 (4 ounce) package feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
1 cup unsalted butter, melted

Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Slowly cook and stir onion until tender, about 5 minutes. Mix in spinach and salt. Stir in feta cheese, cottage cheese and egg. Cook and stir until thickened, 5 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to simmer. Preheat oven to 400. Unroll phyllo dough sheets one at a time on a flat surface. Brush with unsalted butter. Cut into strips approximately 5 inches wide. Place 1 tablespoon of the onion, spinach and feta mixture at one end of each dough strip. Fold the end of the strip over the filling so that it forms a triangle. Continue folding the strip in triangles until a small, triangular stuffed pastry remains. Brush with unsalted butter. Repeat with remaining phyllo dough.
Arrange stuffed triangles on a large baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven 12 to 15 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm. Makes 2 1/2 to 3 dozen


BEEF BOUREKES (meat)

1 pound lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped finely
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 to 2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 pounds puff pastry sheets
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 400. Aluminum foil cover 2 large cookie sheets with sides. In a skillet brown the beef and onions in the oil. Add garlic and brown a little. Add about 1/2 cup water, and simmer until all the red is out of the beef, about 10 minutes. Remover the meat from the heat, drain the remaining liquid and then add the allspice, and turmeric. Mix to combine. Roll the dough slightly, and cut into 3" squares. Fill each square with about 1 tablespoon of the meat mixture, shape into closed, triangle and place them on the covered cookie sheet. Brush the top with beaten egg, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Pour extra fat off. Serve immediately or cool, refrigerate. To serve, warm in an open pan at 350 until crispy. When cool, these can be frozen. Makes 3 dozen.


MUSHROOM AND POTATO BOURKES (pareve)

1 medium onion, chopped finely
2 tablespoon olive oil
6 baby portobello mushrooms, brushed clean and thinly sliced
1 to 2 teaspoons minced garlic
3-4 medium potatoes boiled or microwave, then mashed
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes, optional
1 pound puff pastry sheets
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoon sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 400. In a skillet brown the onions in the oil. Remove the onion to a large bowl, and add mushrooms to the pan. Cook the mushrooms until just tender and then add the garlic. Cook, stirring constantly for about 2 more minutes. Remove the mixture from the heat. Add the mushroom mixture to the onions and add the mashed potatoes. Mix to just combine. add the paprika, pepper, salt and turmeric. Mix to combine and then taste the mixture and adjust the seasoning, if needed, adding the optional hot pepper flakes. Roll the dough slightly, and cut into 3" squares. Fill each square with about 1 tablespoon of the mushroom filling, shape into closed triangle or rectangle, which ever shape you prefer. Place the bourkes on the foil covered pans. Brush the tops with beaten egg, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Pour extra fat off. Serve immediately or cool, refrigerate. To serve, warm in an open pan at 350 until crispy. These can be frozen and then reheated. Makes 18.


BAKED OR FRIED CHICKEN EMPANADAS (meat)

1 recipe empanada dough*
3 to 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 to 2 tablespoons water or broth
1 recipe empanada dough
1/4 cup oil
2 large onions, chopped
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (or to taste)
1.5 tablespoons sugar
salt and pepper
3 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1/2 cup green olives, sliced
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon water

Prepare empanada dough and chill. Shred chicken into small pieces, and moisten with 1 or 2 tablespoons of water broth. Set aside. Heat oil in a skillet. Add chopped onions, paprika, cumin, chili powder, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until onions are soft and clear, and mixture is golden brown. Remove from heat and stir in the chicken. You can use it immediately for the filling but I prefer to let it sit, covered, overnight in the refrigerator. When ready to make the empanadas stir chopped hard boiled egg and olives into filling mixture. Separate empanada dough into golf ball size pieces, and roll each one into a smooth ball. Let rest 5 minutes. Preheat oven to 425. On a floured surface, roll each ball of dough into a circle about 6 inches in diameter. Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of filling in the middle of half of the circle. Brush the edges of the dough along the bottom half of the circle. Fold the top half of the circle of dough over the filling to form a semicircle, and press edges together.
Brush pressed edge with a little bit of water, and fold and the edge over itself, pinching and crimping as you go to make a braid-like effect. Place empanadas on a baking sheet. Mix egg yolk with water and brush mixture over entire surface of each empanada. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown and slightly puffed. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 10 to 12 empanadas.
*Dough recipe

This dough can be used for baked or fried empanadas. If you are going to fry the empanadas, roll the dough out slightly thinner (less than 1/4" thickness).

4 cups flour
1-2 teaspoons salt
2-3 tablespoons sugar
14 tablespoons shortening, at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon cup water

Sift the flour into a bowl. Stir in the salt and the sugar. Add the vegetable shortening and knead until it fairly well blended with the flour. Stir in the 1/2 cup of water, a little at a time until the dough comes together smoothly. Keep kneading the dough, adding water if necessary, until the dough is very smooth, about 5 to10 minutes. You can knead the dough with a dough hook attachment. Cover the dough with saran wrap and let rest on the counter for about a half hour. (Dough can also be kept overnight in the refrigerator, then brought to room temperature before using.) Dough should be soft and smooth, and not elastic - if you poke a hole in it with your finger, the indentation should remain. Turn dough out onto a floured surface, and roll into desired thickness. Makes enough dough for 8 large empanadas.


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Recent Comments

14 tablespoons shortening for 4 cups flour, is that correct?

Joyce posted on 10/27 at 03:35 PM.

Yes that is correct. It’s 3/4 of a cup of margarine or what ever shortening you prefer. Just email me if you have any more questions. Eileen

eileen posted on 10/27 at 06:13 PM.

Thanks for sharing keep the good work!

Step posted on 11/04 at 11:06 PM.


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