Did you all have a wonderful holiday? I certainly hope so! As fun as it was, I’m more than ready for life to get back to its normal routine. The entire past month feels like an insane blur to me – our holiday party, a week of “vacation” that was mostly full of holiday-related tasks and errands, a weekend trip to Chicago, work while the rest of the fam was on vacation and the actual holiday – whew! For our annual holiday party, I generally try to do most of the food prep in advance, but this year I was determined to have essentially everything ready the night before the party. The morning of party day was the one and only day Santa would be visiting our favorite location to see him and I didn’t want to be rushing the kids or stressing about the party. With that in mind, I set out to make a party menu that would be amenable to advance prep. Empanadas were one of the first things that came to mind since they can be made and frozen ahead of time and baked just before the party. I posted about them on Instagram and had a few requests to share them before New Year’s Eve. You ask, I deliver!
Though the advance prep does take some time, it’s fairly straightforward. The empanada dough can be made in the food processor and the filling is basically a jumble of veggies roasted until tender in the oven. The up front effort definitely pays off later for effortless entertaining. When it’s go time, all you have to do is put the frozen empanadas on a baking sheet, brush with egg wash, and bake them until golden brown. I served them with the garlicky green sauce from this chicken because 1) it is awesome and 2) it goes with almost everything. The combination was superb and was a big hit at the party. If you are hosting or contributing to a NYE shindig, these could be a great option. Enjoy!