Pastéis Recipe

These half-moon shaped pastries are popular throughout Brazil and were originally brought to Sâo Paulo by Japanese immigrants. Pastéis are great for parties and informal gatherings and can be made with a wide variety of basic ingredients that you have on hand.

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 8oz. package of cream cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese
1 tbsp cachaça (or white rum)
1 cup water
1 tspn salt
1 egg

Preparation:

1. Mix flour and salt together in a mixing bowl of an electric mixer.
2. In a separate bowl, mix canola oil, cachaça, and vinegar.
3. Slowly add the mixture from step #2 to the flour and salt mixture.
4. Slowly add water little by little as you mix all of the ingredients together.
5. Work the dough and let rest for at least 2 hours.
6. Take a small handful of the dough and roll it out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface. Roll dough until it is thin.
   
7. Use a bowl or round cookie cutter that is about 4 inches across to cut circles from the sheet of dough.
   
8. Assemble filling. For this recipe, use about 1 to 2 tablespoons of mozzarella cheese and a small slice of cream cheese per pastéis. You can experiment with a variety of other ingredients as well.
9. Add the filling of your choice to the center of the circular piece of dough.
   
10. Fold the piece of dough into a half-moon and pinch the edges together using your fingers or a fork.
    
11. Repeat steps 6 through 10 until all of the dough has been used.
12. Deep fry the pastéis in a deep fryer, 3 to 4 at a time until golden brown. Optional: baste the pastéis with a light coat of egg yolk before frying them to give them a richer, complex color and added flavor.

Brasil