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For the rice:
(these measurements are approximate)
1-2 tablespoons of oil
1/2 onion
1 packet Goya brand Sazón con azafran. ***You can get this in the latino section of just about any grocery store. It comes in a yellow and orange box. ***
Cilantro to taste (the fresh is cheap and tastes so much better!)
2 cups of uncooked rice
3 1/2 -4 cups of water.

1. Heat the rice cooker. Place the oil and onion in and saute.
2. Add the azafran. stir to mix well.
3. Add the uncooked rice. Mix well to coat the rice.
4. Cut up as many cilantro leaves as you would like. Cutting them adds more flavor to the dish.
5. Add the water. This is when I restart my rice cooker to cook the rice. On mine I just simply flip the switch from warm to cook.

Mean while the rice is cooking......

Empanadas[/COLOR}

Again, all this is approximate since I have never used measurements.

Mesa Flour. Again in the latino section of the grocery store. This is a corn flour and is sold in 5lb packages.
Water
Season salt (optional)
Your filling (grated cheese, cut up chicken or other meat, or frijoles, etc)
Oil for frying


Put some flour in a bowl. I usually use about 4-5 cups of flour.
If you are adding any season salt, you want to do it now.
Add enough water to make a dough. (think homemade play dough)

Take the dough and make some balls, about 3 inches in diameter.
Roll each ball out to make a round flat tortilla. I use a tortlla press, but if you dont have one, you can use a rolling pin or simply flatten them out by hand. You want them to be about the thickness of a pie crust.

****TIP....take a plastic grocery bag and cut 2 large pieces from it. Place the ball of dough on one piece, and place the second plastic piece on top of the dough ball. Then flatten into a tortilla. This way your dough will not stick to any surfaces while rolling out.*****

When you have it in the desired thickness, peel one plastic sheet off. Put a little bit of your filling down the center, like a taco. Then I find it easiest to pick up the tortilla and fold it between my hands, then press the edges together.
Repeat till you all that you want.

Heat oil in a skillet. Place each empanada in the oil and fry on each side till golden brown.



[COLOR:GREEN]Frijoles Negro con Lizano
(Black Beans)

1 can of black beans
1/2 onion
cilantro to taste
Lizano sauce (Wonderful stuff! You can find it in 2 latino stores that I know of. One is on 23rd Ave (next door to the out reach Thrift store) and the other is on Newberry Rd near 34th St (Almost across from What A Burger)

Place the bean, onion and cilantro in a blender. Blend till smooth. Add Lizano sause to taste. Usually about a tablespoon or so.

This is used a dip for the empanadas, or you can use it as a chip dip. Just add a little bit of cheese on top and warm in the microwave.



***The dough for the empanadas is the same way tortillas are made. When you flatten out the dough, just heat up a skillet and spray with non-stick cooking spray. cook on either side till golden brown. *****

That is great!!! My husband was going to make empanadas tonight, but my in-laws asked us to eat dinner with them. That means that I can try this recipe this weekend. Yippie!!!
It sounds wonderful!

Thank you SO much for sharing this! I cannot wait to try it!