Basketball Empanadas

Name: Basketball Empanadas
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 16
Ingredients: 1 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 lb lean ground turkey (we used 90% lean); 1 cup diced onion; 2 large garlic cloves, minced; 1 tablespoon from 1 container (6.25 oz) Old El Paso™ Original Taco Seasoning Mix; 1 can (4 oz) Old El Paso™ Chopped Green Chiles, drained; 2 tbsp juice from 1/2 lime; 1 can (10 oz) Old El Paso™ Mild Green Chile Enchilada Sauce; 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack or mixed cheddar and Jack; 2 boxes (14.1 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Pie Crusts (2 Count); Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tsp water); 1 garlic clove, minced; 1 can (4 oz) Old El Paso™ Chopped Green Chiles (undrained); 1/2 cup chopped green onions (6 small green onions); 1/3 cup chopped cilantro; juice from 1/2 of a lime; 1/2 of an avocado; 1/4 cup sour cream

Looking for the perfect appetizer for gameday? Look no further. These basketball-shaped empanadas will be the MVP of your gameday watch party!

Prep 50 Minutes

Total Time 1 Hours 15 Minutes

Servings 16

Ingredient List

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 lb lean ground turkey (we used 90% lean)
1 cup diced onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon from 1 container (6.25 oz) Old El Paso™ Original Taco Seasoning Mix
1 can (4 oz) Old El Paso™ Chopped Green Chiles, drained
2 tbsp juice from 1/2 lime
1 can (10 oz) Old El Paso™ Mild Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack or mixed cheddar and Jack
2 boxes (14.1 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Pie Crusts (2 Count)
Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tsp water)

Green Chile-Avocado Crema:

1 garlic clove, minced
1 can (4 oz) Old El Paso™ Chopped Green Chiles (undrained)
1/2 cup chopped green onions (6 small green onions)
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
juice from 1/2 of a lime
1/2 of an avocado
1/4 cup sour cream

Preparation

To make Empanadas: Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the ground turkey, onion and garlic in oil until turkey is no longer pink.
Add the taco seasoning mix and green chiles.
Stir in lime juice and green enchilada sauce; cook 5 minutes to thicken sauce.
Cool the filling to room temperature.
Add the shredded cheese to the filling.
Preheat the oven to 375° F.
For basektball-shaped pies: Unroll one of the pie crusts. Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 8 rounds from the crust. Cover rounds with plastic wrap until ready to assemble. Repeat with the second crust. Reroll the dough scraps together, and cut out 4 more rounds. Repeat with the second box of pie crust. Using a paring knife, lightly score half of the dough rounds to look like the seams on a basketball. Cover the scored rounds with plastic wrap until ready to assemble.
When ready to assemble, place about 2 tablespoons of the filling in the center of an un-scored dough round, then spread it out slightly to create an even layer with a 1/4-inch border of dough around all sides. Brush the egg wash around the outer edge of the dough round, then place a scored dough round over top, and press the edges down to seal them together. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
Crimp the edges with a fork, then brush the tops with egg wash.
Bake for 23 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and delicious.
To make Green Chile-Avocado Crema: Add all ingredients to a blender jar, and blend until smooth. Add a pinch of salt if needed.

Expert Tips

A small cookie scoop makes it easier to add the same amount of filling to each pie.
It’s always better to err on the side of not enough filling than to try stuffing too much in each empanada; the dough will be harder to close if there’s not enough of an edge around the filling in the middle, and the empanadas could burst and spill the filling out onto the tray while baking.