Australian Meat Turnovers Recipes

GROUND BEEF TURNOVERS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt; cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a small bowl, combine the water, egg and vinegar. Add to shortening mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing lightly with a fork until mixture forms a ball. Cover and chill for 30 minutes., Meanwhile, combine the first six filling ingredients. Divide pastry into 15 equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll out one portion into a 6-1/2-in. circle. , Mound a heaping 1/3 cup filling on half of circle. Moisten edges with water; fold dough over filling and press edges with a fork to seal. Transfer to a greased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pastry and filling. , Cut three slits in the top of each turnover; brush with cream. Bake at 375° for 35-40 minutes or until vegetables are tender and crust is golden brown.

EMPANADAS (BEEF TURNOVERS)

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. Add onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes more. Stir in tomato sauce, olives, Sofrito, Sazon, garlic, oregano and black pepper. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer until mixture thickens, about 15 minutes.
• On a lightly floured work surface, using a rolling pin, roll out discos until 1/2-inch larger in diameter. Spoon about 1 tbsp. meat mixture into middle, fold in half to form a half moon; moisten edges with water and pinch to seal closed, or seal with a fork.
• Fill a deep saucepan with oil to a depth of 2 1/2-inches. Heat oil over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking (350 degrees F on deep-fry thermometer). Cook Empanadas in batches until crisp and golden brown, flipping once, 4 - 6 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

APPLE TURNOVERS

Steps:

• Combine the lemon and 4 cups water in a large bowl. Place the sliced apples in the water to keep them from browning.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Drain water from apples, and place them into the hot skillet. Cook and stir for about 2 minutes. Add brown sugar, and cinnamon, and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes. Stir together cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water. Pour into the skillet, and mix well. Cook for another minute, or until sauce has thickened. Remove from heat to cool slightly.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Unfold puff pastry sheets, and repair any cracks by pressing them back together. Trim each sheet into a square. Then cut each larger square into 4 smaller squares. Spoon apples onto the center of each squares. Fold over from corner to corner into a triangle shape, and press edges together to seal. Place turnovers on a baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between them.
• Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until turnovers are puffed and lightly browned. Cool completely before glazing.
• To make the glaze, mix together the confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla in a small bowl. Adjust the thickness by adding more sugar or milk if necessary. Drizzle glaze over the cooled turnovers.

AUSTRALIAN MEAT TURNOVERS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350'F.
• 2. In a large saute pan, heat up a tbsp. of oil and add the onion, celery and carrots. Saute for 1 minute. Add the garlic and ground turkey. Stir to break up the meat and cook for 2-3 minutes until the meat is beginning to change colour.
• 3. Add the salt, pepper and oregano. Stir in the ketchup, Dijon, tamari and broth. In a small bowl mix the water and arrow root flour together and mix well.
• 4. Remove the saute pan from the heat, set aside and let it cool slightly. Lay the thawed sheets out and cut into 8 equal squares. You might have to roll the full sheet a little to make it square.
• 5. Put a piece of parchment on your baking sheet and lay the squares onto the parchment and put some of the mixture on each of the 8 squares.
• 6. With the beaten egg, lighty paint the edges of the pastry. Fold the pastry over the tilling and seal the edges well. You should have 8 triangles when you're done.
• 7. Brush each of the turnovers with more egg and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the pastries are puffed up and golden brown on the outside.
• 8. Serve Warm and Enjoy!

MINI MEAT PIES (AUSTRALIAN PARTY PIES)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180˚C / 360˚F.
• Remove 2 frozen sheets of shortcrust pastry and puff pastry and leave them on the bench to thaw.
• Heat the olive oil in a large pan and throw in the onions and garlic. Stir them around and cook until nicely fragrant and you just want to eat them all up (around a minute or so). You know, that amazing "Oh my god as if that's only onions and garlic" smell.
• Add the beef mince and cook until nicely browned, then pour over with red wine and sprinkle in the smoked paprika and nutmeg. Next, add in the mushrooms and grated carrots. Cook down until all the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally so nothing sticks and burns.
• Now reduce the heat to medium and add in the tomato paste, beef stock and that glossy brown gravy. Give everything a good stir. Remove from the heat and start working on those pie crusts!
• Use a large circular jar or bowl to cut out circles roughly 12 cm / 4.5 inches in diameter for the shortcrust pastry bases, and 8 cm / 3 inches for the puff pastry tops. Note: Sizes may vary slightly depending on the size of your muffin tray.
• Press the shortcrust bases out into a muffin tin, then scoop in some of the beef filling until they're full to the top. Don't overfill, as this will cause the pies to leak while cooking and pop the tops off.
• Next, place the puff pastry lids over each pie and press around the edge of each lid with your finger to seal them.
• Baste with the beaten egg and pierce the tops 4 times with a skewer. Pop them in the oven to bake for around 25 minutes or until the tops are flaky and golden brown.
• Serve hot with your favourite sauces such as tomato sauce/ketchup, bbq sauce, Worcestershire sauce or takoyaki sauce.

AUSTRALIAN MEAT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Dredge beef in flour and sear in oil in a hot pan. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 4 more minutes. Add the spices, Worcestershire and soy sauce and cook until the liquid is almost dissolved. Add the stock and cook until the meat is coated in thick gravy. Transfer to a container and cool.
• Roll 2 sheets of pastry to 1/2-inch thickness. Line 8-inch tart molds with the rolled pastry. Line the pastry with tin foil and prebake for about 8 minutes. Let cool.
• Roll out the remaining pastry sheets and cut lids for the pies. Fill baked shells with the meat mixture and cover with the cut pastry lids. Attach lids with egg wash. Brush the tops with the remaining egg wash and sprinkle with black pepper.
• Bake for 8 minutes or until golden brown.