Guava Cheese Empanadas are crispy, sweet, and tart. Say hello to your new favorite treat!
I am excited to bring you these guava cheese empanadas! I’m a huge fan of guava and use it quite frequently, like in my 2-ingredient guava pastelitos (baked puff pastries). But I especially like guava paste when it’s paired with tangy cream cheese like these guava cheese empanadas.
I think guava is so easy to work with. You can find guava paste at most Hispanic food marts, or you can order from Amazon.
Guava paste, or pasta de guayaba, comes in a solid paste that you can cut into strips or cubes. It’s very sweet with a concentrated guava flavor which reminds me of strawberries.
The actual amount that you put into your empanadas depends on your taste. I like a 2:1 ratio. Two strips of cream cheese to about 1 strip of guava paste. You could also do 50:50.
You can buy pre-made empanada wrappers in the store. They’re found in the frozen section. If your grocer doesn’t carry them, you can make your own using my homemade empanada dough recipe.
Since these are a sweet empanada, I like to make them a little smaller than meat-filled pies, but the size is up to you.
They’re typically fried, but you can bake them as well. They don’t have the same crispy texture when they’re baked, and you’ll need to brush the outside with a beaten egg. I recommend using regular pie dough, not empanada dough, if you want to bake them.
To assemble, take your empanada disc and lay cream cheese and guava over half the circle. Fold the other half of the circle over the filling and crimp the edges to seal. If the edges don’t want to stick together, you can moisten with water or beaten egg.
Fry each turnover for about 1-2 minutes per side, or until golden brown. The insides will be very hot! Wait a minute before digging in or you’ll give yourself a cheese burn.
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You should also try this pastelitos de hongos recipe from Karla Tatiana Vasquez’s SalviSoul Cookbook.
Guava Cheese Empanadas Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 Empanada Wrapper thawed*
- 4 ounces Cream Cheese
- 2 ounces Guava Paste
- Vegetable Oil for frying
Instructions
- Slice the cream cheese into 1/4 inch slices. Dice the guava into 1/4 inch cubes.
- Take 1 slice of cream cheese and place on half of empanada disc. Top with a few cubes of guava paste. Fold dough over and press edges to seal. Crimp edges with a fork. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
- To cook, heat 1/2 inch of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add empanadas to pan, but do not over-crowd. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip empanada and cook for another 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Continue process until all the empanadas have been fried.
Notes
- If you cannot find empanada discs in the freezer section, you can substitute refrigerated pie dough instead.