Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Cheese Empanadas

Unsurprisingly I struggled to find a tasty and interesting vegetarian Argentinian dish for the World Cup.  The closest I got was a BBQ aubergine slathered with chimichurri sauce.  The second time I watched them play I made these empanadas, the Latin cousin of our Cornish pasty.

Ingredients
300g plain flour
1 tsp salt
80ml veg or sunflower oil
60ml cold water
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 poblano chili (mild green) 
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
500g mashed cooked sweet potatoes
400g black beans (tinned), rinsed and drained
250g White Cheese (like Feta) 
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh corriander
1 tsp chili powder
pinch of smoked paprika
1 egg white, lightly beaten 

Method

Combine flour and a teaspoon of salt in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine veg or sunflower oil, 1/4 cup water, 1 tablespoon vinegar, and egg in a medium bowl. 
Gradually add oil mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Knead lightly until smooth. Shape dough into a ball, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 1 hour.

Place the poblano chili on a foil-lined baking sheet; place under the grill until blackened, turning after about 5 minutes. 
Remove and wrap in cling film.  Let it stand 15 minutes then peel the chili pepper; cut in half lengthwise. Discard seeds and finely chop.

Cook the cumin seeds in a large saucepan over medium heat 1 minute or until toasted, stirring constantly. Place cumin into a pestle and ground. Combine the ground toasted cumin seeds, with the green poblano chili, sweet potatoes, black beans, cheese, onion, fresh corriander, chili powder, salt in a large bowl; mash with a fork until almost smooth.

Divide dough into 10 equal portions, shaping each into a ball. Roll each dough portion into a (12cm) circle on a lightly floured surface. Working with 1 portion at a time (cover remaining dough to keep from drying), spoon 3 level tablespoons of the sweet potato mixture into center of each circle. Moisten edges of dough with egg white; fold dough over filling. Press edges together to seal, crimp with fork to help. Place empanadas on a large baking sheet and brush them with a little oil. Cut 3 diagonal slits across top of each empanada and sprinkle each with a pinch of smoked paprika. 


Preheat oven to 200°C and bake the empanadas for around 16 minutes or until lightly browned.