Fried Pastries

"Pasteis," are very popular snacks in Portugal and Brazil. They are made with a very thin pastry enclosing a filling, which are then deep fried.  

Frying Dough:

1 cup Milk
2 Tbsp margarine At room temperature
1 tspn Salt
2 cups Water
1 ea Egg

Place flour on a board and make well on the centre. Drop egg, salt and margarine into well and knead well. Gradually add water. Continue kneading until elastic. Let stand for 1 hour. Roll out very thin. Cut with cookie cutter, making a circle of about 4 inches diameter. Place a tablespoon of filling at one side of the centre and add egg slice and one olive. Do not overfill. Fold dough over the filling and press edges together with fort tines dipped in cold water. Fry in hot oil until golden brown. Place  on paper towel to absorb excessive fat. Yields 30 pasteis.

Cheese Filling:

2 cups Swiss Cheese Shredded
2 Tbsp Onion Grated

Mix onion to the cheese.

Chicken and Mushroom Filling:

3 cups Mushroom Sliced
1 cup Chicken meat Shredded, cooked
2 Tbsp Margarine
1 cup White Sauce Seasoned
1 Tbsp Cheese Grated
Salt & Pepper

Sauté mushrooms and chicken in margarine and add well-seasoned white sauce. Mix well, add grated cheese and cool.

Ground Meat Filling:

2 lb Beef or Pork Lean, ground
1 Tbsp Oil
2 cups Onion Chopped
2 Tbsp Parsley Chopped
2 Tbsp Tomato sauce
1 ea Beef Cube
Salt & Pepper
Olives Pitted
3 ea Eggs Boiled and sliced

Sauté meat in hot oil with onion and parsley. Add water, beef cube, tomato paste, salt, pepper. Cover skillet and simmer, stirring often, until mixture is almost dry. Place boiled egg slices and olive to each pastel when adding the filling.

Shrimp Filling:

1 lb Shrimps Cleaned
1/3 cup Olive oil
3 ea Green Pepper Chopped very fine
1 ea Onion Chopped very fine
1 cup Coconut Milk
3 Tbsp Cheese Shredded
2 ea Egg Yolks
Salt & Pepper

Sauté clean shrimps in olive oil with green pepper and onions. Add coconut milk, cheese and egg yolks. Cook until the mixture has a thick creamy consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

 

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