Veggie No-Beef Empanadas

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat and fry the garlic, onion and Mexican-style spices* for around 1 minute, or until fragrant (see Tip). In the meantime, cut the the veggie beef into smaller pieces. Turn down the heat, then add the veggie beef and Romano pepper and fry for 3 – 4 minutes.

*Take care, this ingredient is spicy! Use as preferred.

Tip: if you'd like to serve some of the onion raw in the salad, fry just half of it here and keep the rest to add to the salad later.

Add the passata and cover with the lid, then cook for 8 minutes over low heat, stirring regularly. Remove the lid and allow the sauce to reduce for 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, take remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, dice the tomato and the cucumber. Finely chop the parsley and cut the lime into wedges. In a salad bowl, combine the extra virgin olive oil with the juice of one lime wedge per person. Season with salt and pepper, then add the tomatoes, cucumber and parsley to the bowl. Toss well to combine with the dressing.

Stir the cheddar into the sauce. Roll out the the puff pastry onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and cut it into three squares per person (see Tip). Top each square with 2 tbsp of the filling, then fold the pastry over so as to make triangles. Carefully press the edges together with a fork, then bake in the oven for 10 - 15 minutes or until golden brown. 

Tip: if necessary, use a rolling pin to make the pastry thinner.