Breakfast Empanadas

Frozen pie crust

and leftover cheese ball made me think, "Breakfast Empanadas." This is my version of a hot pocket and my husband loves to take them to work for breakfast or lunch. (He goes to work early so he usually packs breakfast and lunch every day.)

I scrambled a pot of eggs and mixed in some chopped onion and ham.

 

Roll out your pie crust. Roll it out thin between two pieces of plastic wrap. You don't want to add any additional flour or else you will get the fat to flour ratio off and your crust won't be as crispy. 

Divide the dough into rectangles. Mine were about 4" x 6". Spread with the cheese ball or use plain cream cheese or onion and chive would be great also.

Top with a small amount of the egg mixture.

Fold over.

Transfer to a baking sheet and crimp the edges with a fork.

Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool on a wire rack. When cooled, wrap in a paper towel and place in a ziplock freezer bag. The paper towel helps absorb the moisture when they are reheated so the crust stays crispier. You could wait to wrap them in the towel until you were going to reheat them. My husband just likes them all ready to go. 

Here's my recipe. This calls for making a different dough, but pie crust works just fine. There are lots of combinations of filling flavors you could come up with. Check out the "Hot Pockets" in the freezer section of the grocery store for inspiration.

Breakfast Empanadas
Dough:	Filling:
½ cup butter, softened	6 oz cream cheese, softened
3 oz cream cheese, softened 1 cup all-purpose flour	Chopped onions, chives, and green peppers ⅔ cup shredded cheese
	5 large eggs, scrambled
	Precooked sausage or bacon, crumbled
To make the dough: Cream together the butter and cream cheese. Add the flour and mix until you have a smooth ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate a few hours or up to a week. To make filling: Mix cream cheese, chopped onions, chives, peppers, and shredded cheese. Scramble the eggs and stir in sausage or bacon. To assemble empanadas: Roll chilled dough thin and cut into 5-inch circles, using a small bowl as a cutter. Spread cream cheese mixture over each dough circle, leaving a little border around the edge. Top with scrambled egg mixture. Fold each circle in half, pinching edges to seal. Bake on greased baking sheet at 375° F for 15–20 minutes or until golden brown. To freeze: Wrap cooled empanadas in paper towel and then place in ziplock bags. Reheat in microwave. You can also freeze these before baking. Just thaw and bake as above.