Minced-Meat Filling

(Will fill 5½ dozen empanadas)

1 pound beef tongue (beef chuck roast may be substituted)

1 pound pork shoulder

1 cup piñon nuts, shelled

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup piloncillo, grated, or dark brown sugar

3 apples, cored and baked whole until soft. Squeeze the pulp out of the skins. (1½ cups unsweetened applesauce may be substituted)

½ cup golden raisins

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp sea salt

1 cup broth, reserved from tongue or roast

1 cup cooking oil for frying

One day ahead of time, cook tongue (or beef) and pork in a roasting pan at 325° for 2½ hours. Turn off the oven and let meat sit for another hour. Peel the tongue. Remove any large pieces of visible fat from the pork (and/or beef) while still warm. If you let the meat get cold, it will be much more difficult to work with. Cut the meat into long slices suitable for feeding into a meat grinder.

Feed meat through the grinder using the disk for a medium grind. If you don’t have a grinder, chop the meat, 1½ cups at a time, in a food processor, pulsing for a few seconds until pieces are the size of piñons.

Add rest of ingredients except for broth and piñon nuts and combine well.

Pay close attention to the texture of the filling. Add broth and/or applesauce (as preferred) a little at a time until the filling is light — not dense or wet. If the filling is too wet, the empanadas will be soggy and hot oil will pop up during frying. If you do end up with filling that is too wet, put it uncovered in an oven preheated to 325° and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring once. Let the filling cool thoroughly before you assemble the empanadas.

Fold piñon nuts into the mixture until evenly distributed. Refrigerate overnight to let the flavors meld.