Help me make delicious turnovers

February 12, 2008 4:50 PM

I am a fan of turnovers, pasties, empanadas and similar instances of the global phenomenon of creating a portable meal by putting something yummy in the middle of pastry. I usually put ground beef in my turnovers, but I'm getting bored of variations on spiced ground beef. Help me find new delicious things to encase in pie crust! I'm looking for recipes, links to recipes, ideas for recipes, and cookbook recommendations. Feel free to recommend things that are sweet, savory, or both.
posted by craichead to food & drink (33 comments total)

Salvadoran tamales use a banana leaf, I think, instead of corn husk, and are usually chicken and cheese, sometimes with nopale, and are much moister and milder than most Mexican tamales. Pupusas are also popular in El Salvador and much of Central America and are delicious. Corn masa, again, but prepared differently, in a cake, with meat and veggie filling.
posted by luriete at 4:57 PM on February 12, 2008

I still haven't found a recipe for anything quite like the piroshkies from Piroshky Piroshky in Seattle, but maybe you can take some inspiration from the menu. The potato/mushroom/onion is my favorite, and it doesn't SEEM complicated, but I've never been able make anything close to it...
posted by xil at 4:59 PM on February 12, 2008

My Somali friends make Sambusa. Do a search--there's a ton of recipes and you can easily improvise. It's made with spring roll wrappers. It traditionally has alot of cumin.
posted by wafaa at 5:03 PM on February 12, 2008

I had some delicious spicy pasties made with pistachios, though I can't seem to turn up any recipes.
posted by klangklangston at 5:06 PM on February 12, 2008

Cook 1.0 has some good ideas for 'pocket tarts'. My favorite: Diced tomato, kalamata olives, mozzarella and a touch of dijon mustard in puff pastry.
What you're also looking for is recipes for Australian meat pies.
posted by lilithim at 5:07 PM on February 12, 2008

Look through some of the droolworthy suggestions in my recent panini post. Most would translate very well to a pastry for a portable, pocket-sized feast. There are lots of sweet and lots of savory suggestions.
posted by iconomy at 5:08 PM on February 12, 2008

tapanade + cream cheese

curried mashed potato + peas + mint

cubed round or chuck braised in red wine + parsley

ground pork + chinese 5 spice powder + cabbage

mashed potato + spinach

shredded carnitas + cilantro + sofrito

pears + honey + mint

capicolla + salami + fresh mozzerella + plum tomato slices
posted by Juliet Banana at 5:10 PM on February 12, 2008

A Tampa-area restaurant makes cheeseburger empanadas. They are terrific. I'm not sure exactly how they make them, but their website description says, "Flaky pastry stuffed with seasoned sirloin beef and aged cheddar cheese served with a zesty tomato sauce." Hope that sounds as good to you as it does me.
posted by unclejeffy at 5:11 PM on February 12, 2008

My SO regularly makes lentil fillings for his sambusas. (Not sure on the spelling, there, so just going what with someone else said). Lentils are extremely healthy and, more importantly, take spices really well. He usually uses curry spices for his lentils, and they're fantastic. Spicy, flavorful, and delicious. Cooking the lentils in coconut milk also adds to their deliciousness and gives them a nice, rich texture.
posted by Ms. Saint at 5:20 PM on February 12, 2008 [1 favorite]

You should try a Bedfordshire Clanger. One side is sweet, the other is savory. Recipe is in the link, but instead of the sweet filling they recommend I've used my choice of canned pie filling.
posted by mr. plow at 5:27 PM on February 12, 2008

I meant to add that I also substituted the savory with various forms of beef or chicken filling, similar to a pot pie. I'm sure you can come up with tons of variations.
posted by mr. plow at 5:34 PM on February 12, 2008

cheese + (broccoli or corn)
sauteed mushrooms
chicken pot pie filling
posted by mkultra at 5:44 PM on February 12, 2008

If you're not making your pasties with at least 25% rutabaga/swede, you're doing it wrong!
posted by pullayup at 5:50 PM on February 12, 2008

Samosas. I can't recommend a particular recipe as I buy them at local Indian groceries. Serve with cilantro or tamarind chutney.
posted by Morrigan at 5:58 PM on February 12, 2008

you could do what Chileans do, hard boiled eggs and olives in the 'empanda pino'. Also, I am suprised by how amazingly big the empanada wiki entry is, I am sure it will give you some great ideas.
posted by Large Marge at 6:40 PM on February 12, 2008

1. Saffron rice, chicken, lemon juice, a bit of sour cream.

2. Crab meat, mashed potato, onion, bacon.

3. Sourdough bread bits, scrambled egg, maple syrup, cinnamon.
posted by artdrectr at 6:53 PM on February 12, 2008

You might find some inspiration from the very Czech kolache. Where my wife works, they bring them in on Friday mornings as "belly bombs".
posted by salsamander at 7:37 PM on February 12, 2008

There's a recipe for samosas in the current issue of Real Simple magazine. I doubt it's very authentic or very spicy, but it does look easy...
posted by homelystar at 8:16 PM on February 12, 2008

I am suprised by how amazingly big the empanada wiki entry is, I am sure it will give you some great ideas.

Agreed. Lots of good ideas there. Some good enough to justify giving a link. ;-)

It is, as you say, a "global phenomenon of creating a portable meal by putting something yummy in the middle of pastry". Wikipedia also has entries for Calzone, Pasty, Knish, Samosa, Sambusac, Gyoza, Pierogi, Turnover, and some others.

Browsing those pages should give you a few ideas of what to put in your portable pastries.
posted by jewishbuddha at 8:29 PM on February 12, 2008

Forfar Bridie.

A variant spanakopita filling -- spinach, feta -- is a common veggie alternative in the now-ubiquitous pastie shop. I think it works. Stilton's a good cheese choice, too. Another way to change things up is to experiment with pastry: shortcrust, flaky, filo, masa, etc.
posted by holgate at 8:53 PM on February 12, 2008

Mmmm, pierogies.

Darra Goldstein's book The Winter Vegetarian has a recipe for a carrot pirog with scallions and dill. It's delicious.
posted by expialidocious at 8:54 PM on February 12, 2008

Trinidad has a great assortment of portable food: aloo pies, chicken pies, doubles, and of course rotis.
posted by ethnomethodologist at 8:57 PM on February 12, 2008

Two words - Jamaican patties. Beef, vegetable, chicken - all delicious. Plus any kind of curry/chickpea combo a la roti is also highly delicious.

For a more dessert like snack, try brie and fig paste. DELISH. Or goat cheese and red plums.
posted by SassHat at 8:59 PM on February 12, 2008

This is what I use for my empanada filling (I call them samosanadas because the flavors are much more Indian than Latin influenced). I'm a vegetarian, so there's no meat here, but I'm sure it would be easy to make a variation with meat.

1 medium potato, cubed

1 half of a large can of pumpkin puree

1 carrot, sliced into rounds

1/4 head of broccoflower/cauliflower/broccoli, chopped small, like for a salad

1/4 medium sized onion, chopped

2 or 3 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tbsp curry powder

1/2 stick of butter

a few dried chiles or some red pepper flake, use as much or as little as you like depending on the level of spiciness you like

olive oil (for roasting)

salt and pepper

water or milk

1. Put the cubed potato in a pot with some water and boil until soft.


2. While the potato is doing its thing in the pot, put the carrot and broccoflower on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.


3. Put the baking sheet into a 400 degree oven and roast until browned and softened, about 10 minutes.


4. In a large skillet, melt about a quarter sick of butter and to this add the onions and garlic.


5. Saute until softened.


6. To the skillet add the pumpkin, and stir.


7. Add salt and pepper to taste.


8. When the potatoes are done, drain, and add them to the skillet as well. I like to smash them quite a bit with the back of a wooden spoon as I'm mixing them in. You're not looking to make them as creamy as the pumpkin, just going for a texture difference.


9. When the carrot and broccoflower are done roasting add them to the skillet as well. I don't mash these at all, again for the texture difference.


10. Now add the rest of the spices and the rest of the butter and stir very well to get the flavors going all the way through.


11. Taste it and adjust any of the flavors to suit your tastes.


12. Let this mixture simmer on low for at least 20 minutes, stirring as needed, to really get the flavors incorporated. If the mixture seems too thick, add some water or milk as needed.

posted by primalux at 10:18 PM on February 12, 2008

Oh, I'd love a recipe for Australian meat pies that taste like what I remember eating there.

But a favorite at my house-Curried Apple Meat Pies:
Pie crust (frozen works fine), in a circle.
Saute ground turkey or pork or beef, about 3/4 of a pound, with an onion, drain fat
Add garlic, a chopped green apple or two, a chopped bell pepper
A tablespoon of curry powder
salt and pepper
a cup or so of frozen peas, if you'd like.
Remove from heat and stir in a couple of cups of sharp cheddar. Fill the pie crust (you should have enough filling for two) and fold over to make half circles. Bake about 25 minutes.. Freeze beautifully-only bake part of the way if freezing.
posted by purenitrous at 10:59 PM on February 12, 2008

One of the more famous Mongolian dishes is some kind of bread stuffed with meat. I can't find its name on the Internets but it's mighty tasty and if you can find out its name and a recipe, I'd be interested too.

Barring that, a remarkably similar dish in Egypt called hawawshi might be what you're looking for. Basically it's ground lamb or beef cooked in a pita (ideally made from whole wheat). The recipe given is, pretty much, entirely unlike you'll find it in most hawawshi joints in Egypt (you just have to go to one of the poorer parts of Cairo and order it there where it's made properly). The trick is somehow to get a lot of fat in there, and then when you're cooking it the grease goes through the entire pita and somehow ends up making it crisp. I don't know how they end up making it but hawawshi is hands down the greasiest thing you'll ever eat.
posted by Deathalicious at 11:39 PM on February 12, 2008

You need to come visit Tempe, Az for the Cornish Pasty Company. You'll have a happygasm in no time flat.

If you can't afford the flight right now, you can at least check out their menu for some awesome pasty ideas that I would have never thought of before enjoying them here.
posted by phredgreen at 12:51 AM on February 13, 2008

27 comments in and no-one mentions pork pie? Definitely the prime meat and pastry concotion for the UK. Incredibly satisfying to make and consume. Recent recipe from the Guardian.
posted by roofus at 4:26 AM on February 13, 2008

I'm going to second the recommendation for a spanakopita. Love the spinach pie.
posted by JJ86 at 5:40 AM on February 13, 2008

cook shredded zucchini just like it is ground beef, until it's a little browned. Add salt, pepper, cumin (just a little), and cheese if you feel like you have to. You can also throw some appropriate herbs in, like cilantro or parsley. A friend from Uruguay made these for a road trip with the urugayan-styel empanada pastry and we couldn't get enough of of them.
posted by ohio at 5:54 AM on February 13, 2008

The Enchanted Broccoli Forest has a whole chapter on vegetarian main-dish pastries -- strudel, quiche, calzone, blintz, etc.
posted by nonane at 7:46 AM on February 13, 2008 [1 favorite]

The recipe for samosas in Enchanted Broccoli Forest (or it could be a different Moosewood book from that era), is fantastic.

Also the kind of the empanada family is the Saltena, its outstanding, look it up.

Off the top of my head I would suggest ground lamp with mint, curry powder, cumin, salt, pepper, cubed blanched potatoes and carrots, and lemon juice, I would add to that some frozen peas which you soak in warm water with a good amount of cayenne pepper. Brown the lamb and add the vegetables for just a minute so the flavors can combine and all of the spices can meld. Add the peas and mix gently and remove from the heat and let it sit for a while so the flavors can continue to get freaky on each other. While that is happening make your dough out of whatever you like (i am not a baker i am afraid) and once you have that set up bake as you normally would.

It should be pretty nice, but it could also be a train wreck.

Have fun.
posted by BobbyDigital at 9:03 AM on February 13, 2008

Seconding Salteñas, a Bolivian relative of the empanada. My wife addicted me early on and I still can't get enough of these. (Apparently neither can Bolivians, my wife told me they were cheap and fantastic in La Paz and Cochabamba and sold as soon as they came out of the oven.)

Being a gringo I probably can't do them justice, but inside there is usually some slow-cooked meat, peas, chunks of potato, hard-boiled egg slices and raisins, along with various and sundry other goodies and a savory, spicy-sweet sauce. Lookin' 'em up on The Google will get you some recipes.
posted by sleeping bear at 8:09 PM on February 13, 2008