Comments on: spicy tempeh empanadas + doing something

By: Meatless Monday: Spicy Tofu Empanadas « in.gredients

Meatless Monday: Spicy Tofu Empanadas « in.gredients — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 22:47:54 +0000

[...] From: The First Mess [...]

By: Laura Wright

Laura Wright — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 14:10:24 +0000

Hi Roxanne!
Thank you for your thoughtful comment. I’m so sorry that the empanadas didn’t work out for you! From the sounds of it, I think your dough may have needed a bit more fat/oil added in. Every batch of chickpea flour is different in terms of absorption so depending on that, the dough may need more moisture to bind it. I generally make doughs like this by feel, adding the water or oil until a I reach a point of elasticity in the dough. I’m not sure how much of a role freshness in the chickpea flour plays, since I know that mine wasn’t terribly fresh when I made these. I’m glad that you found the filling tasty though. Hopefully the dough rolls out a bit easier for you next time :)

Thank you so much for the feedback!
-L

By: Roxanne

Roxanne — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 21:49:18 +0000

Oh man, does this post resonate with me. I go down the same mental spiral all too often. And I hate how counterproductive it actually is, when the initial idea is to be productive in some way, perhaps too many ways. It’s nice to remind myself to return to simplicity- rice and beans, a piece of toast and banana, a good book. But time in the kitchen is also sacred and amazing for all the reasons you stated.
I loved the concept of this recipe and decided I had to try it out. I love the health advantages of using chickpea flower especially. Mine unfortunately didn’t turn out so well. The filling is fantastic, but the dough was difficult to work with, spread out and fold. It felt dry and like it was just crumbling up. I added some water and it was slightly improved and I managed to roll out some empanadas. Out of the oven, though, they turned out kind of how they felt- dry, chalky, crumbly.
Any ideas as to why? Was the flour maybe too old? Should I’ve added more oil?

Thanks for the ideas and inspiration!

By: Laura

Laura — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 16:25:39 +0000

Hi Shayne,
You could definitely use all purpose flour instead. Although the AP may absorb more liquid than the chickpea flour, so just gradually add the liquid ingredients until you have a pliable dough. And since AP flour contains gluten, be careful not to stir the dough up as much to avoid toughness.

Hope that helps :)

-Laura

By: Shayne

Shayne — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 00:36:31 +0000

Not sure if someone asked this already, but I’m not gluten-free, so could I use all purpose flour? If so, are there any changes I would need to make via measurements?