Beef picadillo empanadas

These empanadas are a labour of love. We brown the beef mince with onions and garlic and flavour it with sweet spices - cumin, cinnamon, allspice and a hint of chilli. We add tomatoes and continue to simmer until the mixture is cooked and aromatic.  We then stir through toasted almonds, chopped coriander and finish with lime juice.  After chilling, we pile the whole delicious mixture into circles of our home-made, buttery shortcrust pastry, folding in half and crimping to make a crescent-shaped pie.

Most adults and bigger kids will be able to put away two empanadas at dinner; one is plenty for a smaller child or for lunch on the run. And, just so's you know, they are great cold the next day for tucking into a lunch box. 

Beef, onion, garlic, salt, chilli, allspice, cumin, cinnamon, tomatoes, tomato paste, currants, almonds, lime juice, fresh coriander, flour, butter, olive oil, salt.

Serve with a coriander-jalapeno salsa or spiced tomato chutney.