Viva Vegan!: 200 Authentic and Fabulous Recipes for Latin Food Lovers (49 page)

8. Remove from the oil, very carefully shake off any excess grease, and place on the paper- lined plate to drain. Serve immediately, but be careful biting into a piping hot empanada. To bake: This is not at all traditional but an option if you’d rather not fry. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Oil a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper. Place the empanadas on the prepared sheet and lightly brush the tops with a little vegetable oil. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until their crust is firm and golden. Serve hot.

 

Sweet Rice Pudding Empanadas

 

E
mpanadas can be sweeties, too. For a classy dessert-style empanada, fill small rounds (cut about 4 inches in diameter) of Wheat Dough (richer variation page 201) with ¼ cup apiece of cooled Simply Arroz con Leche rice pudding (page 234). Assemble as directed for baked empanadas, brush well with soy creamer, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar (2 tablespoons of sugar plus ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon) before baking. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 20 to 24 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm and à la mode with a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream!

 

 

•
Makes about 6 cups

•
Time: About 30 minutes, not including overnight chilling

•
Gluten Free, Soy Free

 

2 cups almond milk, preferably
unsweetened, plus 2 additional cups
almond milk or rice milk
2 cups water
2 (3-inch) sticks cinnamon
½ cup sugar
Zest from 1 lime, sliced into ½-inch strips
6 cloves
½ cup long-grain white rice
⅓ cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted and
ground finely
Ground cinnamon or finely ground
Mexican sweet drinking chocolate
(Ibarra, for example), for garnish

 

1. In a large pot, combine 2 cups of the almond milk, and the water, cinnamon sticks, sugar, lime zest, cloves, rice, and ground toasted almonds. Cover and bring to boil, then lower the heat to a simmer; stir and cover. Cook for 20 minutes, stir, and turn off the heat. Remove the lime zest, cover, and let the mixture cool to room temperature before transferring to the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.

2. When the mixture is completely cool, stir in the additional almond milk and remove the cinnamon sticks. Strain by using one of these methods: layer cheesecloth on top of a small bowl, pour the mixture through, and then twist and squeeze the cheesecloth to extract as much liquid as possible. Or, pour the mixture through a fine metal sieve positioned over a bowl and gently press out any remaining liquid with a spoon. Many testers liked to save the drained rice and serve as a chunky cool rice pudding (just to be sure to remove the lime zest and cloves!)

3. Stir the
horchata
and chill; serve it very cold over ice cubes. Sprinkle each serving with ground cinnamon or finely grated sweet Mexican drinking chocolate.

•
Makes about 1½ quarts

•
Time: Less than 15 minutes, not including chilling time

•
Gluten Free, Soy Free

 

P
apelón
or
panela
(as it’s called in Venezuela and Colombia) is perhaps the simplest cane sugar there is, produced by cooking the juice of freshly squeezed sugar cane down to a solid, crystallized mass. Look for it in Latin groceries, sold in heavy, dark round or rectangular cakes. The old-fashioned way to make
agua de papelón
is to soak the
panela
in water overnight until it dissolves. My dad does this, but impatient types like me prefer to cook the
panela
to a simple syrup for faster
agua
drinking pleasures. This recipe easily doubles and the undiluted syrup keeps well in a tightly covered container in the fridge.

 

 

½ pound
panela
(also called
papelón
or
piloncillo
)
1 cup water
½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
3 cups cold water
Thin slices lime or mint leaves,
for garnish

 

1. Using a sharp, heavy knife, coarsely chop the
panela
into ½-inch pieces. Place in a large saucepan, cover with the water, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce and stir occasionally until the sugar has melted, about 5 minutes, then remove from the heat and let cool. Stir in the lime juice. Then, either store the syrup in a glass or plastic, covered container in the refrigerator or, if serving immediately, pour into a large pitcher.

2. To serve limeade, add the cold water to the pitcher, stir well, and pour into chilled glasses filled with ice cubes. Garnish with lime slices or mint. This syrup is slightly concentrated to compensate for melting ice cubes but, if desired, dilute more or use less water for very sweet
agua de papelón
.

•
Makes 1 drink, about 12 ounces

•
Time: Less than 10 minutes

•
Gluten Free, can be made Soy Free

 

 

Mixing Your Batido

 

W
hen you’re blending, try different (or multiple) frozen fruit purees! Sweet purees such as
mamay
,
piña
(pineapple), or papaya may not need much sugar or any. Other sour purees such as passion fruit (sometimes called
maracuyá
),
lulo
or
naranjilla
(a sour orange consumed in Colombia), or
tamarindo
(tamarind) will need considerably more. Some fruits fall somewhere in between like
mora
(Andean blackberry) or my favorite,
guanábana
(also called soursop), so when adding sugar to fruit shakes, go easy at first, then add more after everything has been blended. Keep a selection of purees in reasealable plastic bags in the freezer for a quick
batido
anytime.

 

 

4 to 5 ounces frozen tropical
fruit puree, such as papaya,
guanábana
,
mamay
,
mora
(Andean
blackberry),
tamarillo
,
lulo
, passion
fruit, or coconut
1 cup ice cold water or almond milk,
rice milk, or favorite nondairy milk
Agave syrup or sugar to taste,
anywhere from 1 to 3 tablespoons
A handful of ice cubes (optional)

 

1. Break the frozen fruit puree into chunks and place in a blender jar. Add the remaining ingredients and pulse on the “ice crushing” setting, blending until the fruit and ice are blended and the
batido
is frothy. Pour into a tall glass and serve immediately.