Chicken Empanadas

Ingredients:

• Dough:
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 cups flour
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• Pinch salt
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

• Filling:
• 1 lb. ground chicken breast
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cilantro
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 cup milk
• 2 jalapeno peppers finely diced
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 cup reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese or any kind of Mexican cheese
• 1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomatoes
• olive oil for brushing

Makes 6 Servings

1. For the dough: Mix all the ingredients together and work dough until consistent. Set aside and let it rest for 20 minutes before forming the discos.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Coat a large skillet with cooking spray. Heat skillet over medium heat. Place chicken, onion, chili and cilantro in skillet and cook until chicken is browned. stirring occasionally to break up meat, about 8 minutes. Remove chicken mixture from skillet and set aside.
3. Place skillet over medium-high heat and add flour. gradually aCarefully fold over the circle with contents into a semicircle. Add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium; simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes.
4. Remove skillet from heat; stir in chicken mixture, jalapenos, cumin, cheese and tomatoes.
5. Place the empanada dough on a floured counter top. Roll the dough out into a 1/8 inch thick layer.Cut the dough into circles with round cookie cutters or biscuit cutters.  Remove the excess dough from the cut out circle. Place your filling of choice in the center of the circle.
6. Crimp down the edges with a fork. If the edges won't stick together, wet your finger and rub it along the inside edge of the dough and try again.
7. Place the empanadas in a large baking dish. Brush empanadas with olive oil. Put dish in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve hot.

WW POINTS VALUE: 5 pts (I hope!)

Note: This recipe appears on www.weightwatchers.com, sort of. The orginal recipe appears as Turkey Enchilada Pie but after studying the recipe I decided to go the route of empanadas. Ground chicken was on sale this week at the grocery store and I was in the mood for Latin food. Empanadas are either a  stuffed bread or pastry baked or fried in many countries of Latin America and the south of Europe.  Empanada is made by folding a dough or bread patty around the stuffing. The stuffing can consist of a variety of meats, cheese,  vegetables or fruits among others. I like to think of empanadas as pies and comfort fodd that will help you sleep at night. I learned how to make empanadas last year in aculinary class and I loved them. This was my forst attempt at making empanadas and my mom and I loved them. They were so filling and delicious it  was like having your own little version of a Mexican Chicken Pot Pie. I highly recommend making empanadas on the weekend because they are somewhat time consuming and they are perfect for this time of year for football season and the weather is nice enough to have the oven going on and to open the house up to air out the aromas.