Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. lean ground beef
- 1 small onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
- 1 medium potato, diced
- 1 small bell pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 small, tart apple, such as Granny Smith, cored and diced
- 16 oz. can crushed or diced tomatoes, or three fresh tomatoes, seeded and diced
- 1 or 2 minced fresh jalapeno or serrano peppers
- ½ c. raisins–I prefer golden raisins
- 1/4 c. pimiento stuffed olives, cut in half
- 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
- ½ tsp. crumbled oregano
- ¼ c. slivered almonds
- olive oil
Preparation:
Brown the beef with the onions, potato, and garlic in a skillet. When thoroughly brown, add all of the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the almonds. Stir, and cook for twenty minutes.
As the meat mixture cooks, heat a small, heavy skillet over a low flame. Pour in just enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the heated skillet.
When the oil releases its fragrance, add the almonds. Stir fry until golden. Remove the pan from heat, and drain the almonds briefly on paper towels. Sprinkle the almonds into the meat mixture, and serve.
If you want to make empanadas, mix up a batch of your favorite pie crust dough, and roll it out. Cut circles 3″-5″ in diameter. Fill each circle with 3-4 tsps. of picadillo.
Pinch the edges of the circles together to seal, prick lightly once or twice with the tines of a fork, and brush with a light coating of egg white. Bake at 375 until pale gold, about 25-30 minutes.
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