Smoked Kahawai Empanadas

How to make Smoked Kahawai Empanadas Recipe - An empanada is a stuffed bread or pastry, baked or fried, which is made in Latin America, southern Europe and parts of south east Asia. The name comes from the verb empañar, meaning to wrap or coat in bread. In the United Kingdom it’s simply called a turnover. The benevt of using a smoked fish filling, in this case kahawai, is that you can eat it hot or cold as a snack. Recipe from Dean Brettschneider

MAKES 12 EMPANADAS

PASTRY:
1 quantity of Basic Short Pastry

FILLING:
500g eggplant
80g caster sugar
zest and juice of 2 lemons
3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
60ml hazelnut oil
salt and pepper, to taste
400g smoked kahawai (or any smoked fish)

GLAZE:
1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water, for egg wash

Method:
Make Basic Short Pastry ahead and rest it as required. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry to approximately 3mm thick and then, using a 13–15cm saucer as a template, cut out discs of pastry just before you are ready to fill.

Preheat oven to 200°C and line a large baking tray with foil. Cut off both ends of the eggplants then peel their skins. Finely dice the flesh and place in a large bowl. Add in sugar, lemon zest and juice, garlic and thyme and toss to combine. Spread out on the prepared tray and cover with another piece of foil. Bake for 45–50 minutes, stirring the eggplant once or twice until it is very soft and lightly caramelised. Drain off any juices that may have formed during the cooking process.

Remove from the oven and transfer to a blender. Blend to a rough paste. With the motor still running, slowly pour in the hazelnut oil until the purée is smooth. Transfer the purée to a saucepan and cook over a high heat to dry it out slightly (2–3 minutes). Season well with salt and pepper to taste then allow to cool for 20 minutes.

Flake the kahawai into small pieces, then mix in the candied eggplant.

To fill the empanadas, place 2 heaped tablespoonfuls of the mixture on one half of each of the pastry circles. Brush the edge with egg wash, fold over and crimp the edges together with a fork dipped in flour. Brush the pastry with egg wash then, using a fork, poke holes into the tops to allow steam to escape.

Bake in a preheated 200°C oven for 10 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden-brown in colour.