Recipe Makeover: Lighter Empanadas

By Sidney Fry, MS, RD
Updated: June 09, 2014
Flaky, portable, chicken-and-cheese-packed hand pies with half the salt and fat of the deep-fried version.
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Lighter Empanadas

Photo: Randy Mayor
Food doesn't get much tastier than a deep-fried pocket of flaky dough filled with meaty, cheesy goodness. That's the joy of an empanada, a messy delicacy that's best with a dipping sauce and a mountain of napkins. Their popularity is on the rise, thanks to food trucks. The downside is that what seems like a snack-sized food can contain 500 calories and tons of salt and fat. We love them so much, we just had to make them healthier.

Classic 
496 calories per empanada
32 grams total fat
841 milligrams sodium

Makeover
309 calories per empanada
16.3 grams total fat
455 milligrams sodium

 

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Lighter Empanada Tip #1: Olive Oil

Photo: Randy Mayor
The secret to our tender dough, this heart-healthy fat replaces butter and lard to save 136 calories and 10g sat fat per pie.

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Lighter Empanada Tip #2: Roasted Salsa

Photo: Randy Mayor
Packs a tart punch into our filling and doubles as a dipping sauce to save 110mg sodium per tablespoon over store-bought.
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Lighter Empanada Tip #3: Oven-Baked

Photo: Randy Mayor
No need to deep-fry: Our dough bakes up tender and flaky in the oven. Saves 60 calories and 7g fat per pie over fried.
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