Empanadas Mendocinas + '10 La Posta del Viñatero Malbec for #winePW

The second Saturday of the month is one of my favorite days. Do you know why? Because it's our #winePW - Wine Pairing Weekend - reveal. I absolutely adore it. How can you not love bloggers who love food and love wine. It's a fantastic event from which I never fail to make a wine shopping list.

And this month - the first month of 2015 - Christy of Confessions of a Culinary Diva is hosting. Here's Christy's invitation for "New Wine Resolutions for the New Year."

So, our job this month was to explore a wine, region or grape varietal that we want to learn more about. "So many wines to explore in 2015 and only 365 days to complete the task." If you see this early enough, please join us January 10th at 11 a.m. Eastern Time. We’ll be chatting on twitter at #WinePW about our wine resolutions. We’d love to have you join us!

In My Glass

Funny story. I decided that my wine resolution was to learn more about South American wines, specifically Argentinian wines. I did some reading, searched high and low for the wine I wanted to try, located it, ordered it, and drove to pick it up. When I got home, I looked at a bottle of wine I had just received from some friends for Christmas. Same region. Similar wine. Whoops. I could have saved myself a trip. But, now I have three bottles from Mendoza, Argentina to try. That's never a bad thing.

The wine I picked - La Posta del Viñatero Malbec 2010 - is a flamboyant red. I like big reds. Dense with hints of chocolate and tobacco but with a lush, fruity finish. I will definitely pick up another bottle of La Posta soon.

On the Plate

To match the wine from Mendoza in my glass, I cooked a tradtional empanada from the same region of Argentina. Two things set empanadas mendocinas apart from other Argentinian empanadas: they don't use raisins that are typical in other empanada recipes and the dough includes milk which gives it an added silkiness. These are fairly easy to do and so, so tasty. I had some Kitchen Elves helping me...

Ingredients makes approximately 30 small empanadas

Empanada dough

• 3 C flour
• 1 egg yolk
• ½ C butter
• 1 C milk, warmed (I used whole milk)
• ½ t salt

Beef Filling

• 1 lb ground beef
• 2 T smoked paprika
• 2 T chili powder
• 1 T fresh oregano, chopped
• ½ T ground cumin
• ½ C butter
• 2 onions, peeled and diced
• freshly ground salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
• 3 hard boiled eggs, quartered
• ¼ C caper berries, quartered

To Finish

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Procedure

Empanada dough

Mix the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and blend well. Add the egg yolk and, then, the milk. Knead until the dough comes together in a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Once chilled, roll the dough out between two pieces of parchment paper. Cut out round disc shapes for empanadas - we used a measuring cup.

Beef Filling

Combine the first five ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Melt the butter in a large, flat-bottom pan. Add the onions and cook till the onions are softened and translucent. Add the meat mixture to the onions and cook on medium heat until the meat is cooked, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Let the meat mixture cool, then place at your work area with the chopped green onions, hard boiled eggs, and caper berries.

Assembly

To assemble the empanadas place a spoonful of the meat mixture on one half of the empanada disc, add a slice of egg and caper berry.

Fold the empanada discs in half and seal the edges by twisting and folding the edges of the empanadas with your fingers.

Lightly brush the top of the empanadas with the beaten egg. This gives them a nice golden glow when they bake.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes - till nicely browned and firm to the touch.

Serve warm with chimichurri sauce or other dipping sauces. I whipped up a fresh Ají.

Wine Pairing Weekend #8 
Here's what all of the bloggers have created for the January Wine Pairing Weekend! Try something new this year!

• Sue from It’s Okay to Eat the Cupcake is pairing “Fiery Red & Icy White”. 
• Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla has Argentina on her mind and is sharing “Empanadas Mendocinas + ’10 La Posta del Vi natero Malbec”. 
• Cindy of Grape Experience suggests starting the year with “Wine & Dine: Fontana Candida Terre de Grife 2012 Frascati & Slow Cooker Artichoke Dip”. 
• Shaina of Take A Bite Out of Boca is offering “Herb Marinated Mushrooms with Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile”. 
• William of Wild For Washington Wine is giving us “ A Resolution for Greek Wine, A Recipe for Avogolemeno”. 
• Martin from Enoflyz Wine Blog is shaking things up with “Skillet Kale Pesto & Seitan Pizza with Querceto Chianti Classico” 
• Jade from Tasting Pour is pairing “Halter Ranch Cotes de Paso and Duck Breasts with Cherry Hazelnut Compote”. 
• Sarah that Curious Cuisiniere brings us “Chicken Cacciatore & Washington Merlot”. 
• Wendy from A Day on the Life of the Farm has a “New Year’s Wine Resolution of Prime Rib Roast with 2010 Cotes de Bourg”. 
• David of Cooking Chat Food is going Greek with “Greek Lamb Stew & Wine Pairing”. 
• Jennifer from Vino Travels it taking us to Puglia and sharing “Typical Dishes and Wine Pairings from Puglia”. 
• Jeff from food wine click is focusing on “Wine & Food Resolution 2015: Italy Deep Dive”. 
•  Michelle from Rockin Red Blog will be tempting us “My 2015 Wine Resolution: Diversity!” 
• Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva, is focusing on the “Rhone Rangers & Paul Bocuse”.

And that's a Wrap...

...on our January #winePW event.  My Empanadas Mendocinas + '10 La Posta del Viñatero Malbec pairing was so much fun! I'll pin this recipe and other posts on my #winePW pinterest board. David, the event creator, also has a Wine Pairing Weekend pinterest board. 

And, be sure to mark your calendars for February's Wine Pairing Weekend, hosted by me. We'll be sharing romantic food pairings - sweets and savories - at the #WinePW 9 conversation on Saturday, February 14th! Valentines' Day.

If you can't find La Posta del Viñatero's Malbec, look for a Malbec that is not too syrupy. And if you try this pairing - or just the wine - I would love to hear what you think. Comment below, find Culinary Adventures with Camilla on facebook, or tweet to me at @Culinary_Cam.