Home Cooking with Habs Tweetup: Playoff Pastry Pockets

Now that the playoffs are upon us, it's time to start planning your playoff parties! Snack food is a vital staple at any game day gathering but you don't have to rely on the boring 'same old, same old'...why not try something new?

This week's edition of "Home Cooking with Habs Tweetup" comes courtesy of our Vancouver Habs Tweetup Event Coordinator, Veronica! Her Chilean heritage is highlighted in this recipe for a very tasty pastry called an empanada. Enjoy!

by Veronica, HabsTweetup.com (AllHabs.net)

VANCOUVER, B.C. -- These little pockets of beef heaven are a staple on traditional Chilean holidays, and most every other family gathering, patio party, etc. In Canada these would be suitable for a meal, but in Chile they are merely an appetizer. We do love to eat.

The recipe calls for raisins in the beef mix, but I don't use them. I would NEVER get the kids to eat them with raisins, and I'm not fond of them either. So, you can try the recipe with, or leave them out, and I promise they'll be delicious anyway.

I got this from About.com, because the recipe is exactly right, and the recipes I have are a) in Spanish, and would take forever to translate, and b) not precise about measurements; it is just taken for granted that of course you would know how much flour and shortening goes into the dough, for example - like any good Chilean.

Empanadas Chilenas de Pino (Chilean beef empanadas)

In Chile, the most traditional empanada filling is called "pino". Pino is a seasoned mixture of ground beef, onions, raisins, black olives, and hard boiled eggs. The dough is quick and easy to make, and can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator. The pino tastes best if made the day before and allowed to rest overnight before filling the empanandas.

Empanada Dough

4 cups flour
1-2 tsp salt
2-3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp butter, chilled
12 tbsp lard or vegetable shortening, chilled
3/4 - 1 cup water
2 egg yolks

1. Sift the flour into a bowl. Stir in the salt and the sugar.
2. Blend the butter and shortening (or lard) into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter or with two knives, until fairly well blended.
3. Whisk the egg yolks with 3/4 cups water. Stir in the 1/2 cup of water/egg mixture, a little at a time until the dough starts to come together smoothly. Keep kneading the dough, adding more water/egg a little bit at a time as necessary (you made need a few tablespoons extra of water), until the dough is smooth.
4. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about an hour. (Dough can also be kept overnight or a couple of days in the refrigerator.) Dough should be soft and smooth, and not elastic - if you poke a hole in it with your finger, the indentation should remain.
5. Turn dough out onto a floured surface, and roll into desired thickness.

Makes enough dough for 10-12 large empanadas


Empanada Filling

3 large onions, chopped
1 lb. ground beef
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chile powder 1 tbsp paprika
1 beef bouillon cube, dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water
2 tbsp flour
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped olives 2 hard boiled eggs, sliced 1 egg yolk
2 tbsp milk

1. Cook the onions and garlic in the vegetable oil and butter until softened. Add the ground beef, cumin, chile powder, paprika, beef bouillon, and salt and pepper to taste.
2. Add the beef, stirring and crumbling the meat, until browned. Add the flour and continue to cook for 5 or 10 minutes more.
3. Remove the meat mixture and let cool. The beef mixture will keep up to 2 days in the refrigerator.
4. Shape the empanadas: Separate the dough into golf ball size pieces, and roll into smooth balls. Let rest for 5 minutes. On a floured surface, roll each ball of dough into a 6 inch diameter circle, about 1/4 inch thick. Add 1 tablespoon of the beef filling, a few raisins and some chopped olives, and a slice of hard boiled egg to the middle of the circle.
5. Brush the edges with water and fold the pastry in half over the filling, to make a semi-circle.
6. Seal the edges by pressing down with your fingers. Brush the sealed edge lightly with water, then turn the edge toward the middle and press with your fingers to seal.
7. Mix the egg yolk with 2 tablespoons milk, and brush the empanadas with the mixture.
8. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cut them in half for the steam to escape, and EAT.


Do you have a favourite recipe that you'd like to share? Whether it's traditional or something a tad unique, send it our way! Email your recipes (and a photo of the finished product!) to amy@allhabs.net and you could see your recipe featured here on HabsTweetup.com!

photo credit: www.minuevohogar.cl

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Habs Tweetup Video "Casting Call"

by Amy, HabsTweetup.com (AllHabs.net)

PHILADELPHIA, PA -- Far and wide, folks agree: Habs Tweetups are FUN. You meet new people, make new friends, cheer on your favourite team...good food & drink, good cheer, good times! This truly is Planet Habs and fans from all corners of the globe are getting together to celebrate their passion for the bleu, blanc et rouge. And they're quite vocal about it!

We at HabsTweetup.com are creating a video diary of sorts - a collection of testimonials from Habs fans around the world documenting their account of how Habs Tweetup has made an impression on them.

Click on the video link below to meet some of our Habs Tweetup team members and hear their story! Then read further to find details on how you can share YOUR Habs Tweetup tale with us too.

(Copyright 2011 - HabsTweetup.com)

That's right Habs fans - we want to hear from YOU! This is your opportunity to tell the world why you love the Habs & Habs Tweetup...just like you saw me and my fellow Habs Tweetup crew members do in the video above.

Habs Tweetup Fan Video Testimonials

• Who's eligible to participate? Any Habs fan who is 18 years of age or older.
  
  
• Submissions should be no longer than 90 seconds in length.
  
  
• Testimonials must include the following information:
  - Your first name
  - Your Twitter name
  - Your location (city, state/province, country)
  - Why you think it would be fun to attend a Habs Tweetup OR What your favourite memory or moment has been from a Habs Tweetup you've attended
  - Your most creative and fun way of saying "Go Habs Go!"
  
  
• Recordings should be saved in one of the following video file formats:
  .avi, .mpeg, .wmv, .3GP, or .mov
  
  
• Email your video to amy@allhabs.net
  
  
• Deadline for entries is April 10, 2011

So c'mon Habs fans, fire up those video cameras and send us your story - soon you could be seeing yourself right here on HabsTweetup.com! Have fun, be creative and GO HABS GO!!




All video entries become the sole property of HabsTweetup.com and AllHabs.net. Published video content may not be copied, used or posted elsewhere under any circumstances. All material is copyright protected. Obscene or inappropriate content will not be tolerated. Editing and usage of video entries is at the sole discretion of HabsTweetup.com and AllHabs.net; entries are not guaranteed to be selected or included in future publications. You must be 18 years of ago or older to participate. Email amy@allhabs.net with questions on entries and eligibility.

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One Montreal Weekend in March / Ode to a Habs Tweetup

by chile_pepper, HabsTweetup.com


VANCOUVER, BC -- Hi there, my name is Veronica and I am a Habs fan of the only variety of Habs fan there is: die-hard. Have been since I can remember. Many of you know me on Twitter as @chile_pepper and about 50 of you I've MET/met, for real. And it was all thanks to a magical event known as a Habs Tweetup.


Also, if you know me, you know that I talk, A LOT, and you may also know that I recently started blogging. Okay, so if you either know me 'IRL' or have read any of my blog posts, you know that I am verbose and veer in different directions. I will try to keep this as succinct as possible, but with the primary focus here being my love for my 'tweeps', I can't make any promises that it'll be short but I can promise that the love for the tweeps is a straight road, no exits. Meaning, I'll remain focussed.


It all started a long, long time ago in a little hospital in Santiago, Chile. JUST KIDDING. It all started a little over a year ago, on a little social networking site called Twitter. I joined Twitter at the urging of a friend, but looked at it once and left it for about 6 months. Didn't get it.

Then I looked at it again, and I still remember this, even though it was over 25,000 tweets ago: I was watching a Habs game (I watch every single game thanks to the RDS channel), and I tweeted (something like) 'I love watching the Habs on RDS, because there's no mistaking who they're rooting for.' Then I got my very first @ reply, EVER. It was from Mr. @All_Habs himself, asking what I thought about RDS's obtuseness and lack of objectivity (or something like that). Then he followed me. And I thought, I'm having a conversation! I'm in a Twitter relationship! Whee!


And that was it. Day after day, after tweeting the word 'Habs', I was gaining & following tens upon tens then hundreds of fantastic, fabulous, wonderful, beautiful, shiny, delightful, amazing people who were HABS FANS. Habs fans, yo!! After living in Vancouver for years and only having my brothers to talk to about my beloved team, all of a sudden, there were HUNDREDS of people who loved les glorieux as much as I. They were from all over the country too - concentrated mainly in Montreal of course, but there were tweeps in the Maritimes, Ontario, the prairies, and even, yes, B.C. Even the U.S.!


We had a great time 'getting to know' each other during last year's off-season. And we had A LOT to talk about. Naming a coach. And who could forget the 'smurfs'? Then the season began, and I was watching the games 'with' everyone on Twitter. Swoon with love.


One morning in January, I decided to treat myself to a Montreal getaway. First to-do: see when I could possibly manage that - it had to be before April because, let's face it - a lot of us were worried we wouldn't be making the playoffs. Found a Friday I could easily take off in March, then spend a whirlwind weekend in Montreal.

Here's how single moms do it: get my mother to keep that weekend free to spend it with my kids. Book an Air Canada flight on points. Book a room at very nice hotel downtown, also on points.

Then, the last order of business: send an e-mail to my friend @All_Habs saying: What are the chances of a Habs tweetup in Montreal when I go there in March? His response, bless his HEART, was: "100%." And he and the All_Habs team proceeded to organize an event that would surpass my wildest expectations - by a million miles.


My flight landed in Montreal the evening of Friday, March 19th. I was met at the airport by @All_Habs (I didn't even know what he actually looked like, by the way - on Twitter his avatar is simply the All Habs logo!!), @metricjulie and @kyleroussel. You have no idea how touched I was - 3 people whom I'd never met in person met me at the AIRPORT. In MONTREAL. During rush hour. Unbelievable.

The hospitality simply blew me away. And I was thrilled they were each exactly as I'd imagined they would be. @All_Habs has a dry wit, and sober, measured thoughts. His is the voice of reason. Julie is kind, funny and smart, a girl involved in the man's world of sports radio - no easy task. She's amazing. Kyle has a punchline for everything, and had a funny story of watching the Canada/USA gold medal hockey game in Central America. The 4 of us went to wait out the rush hour and get a couple of drinks at some fine establishment near the airport. It was like we already knew each other! And I guess we already did.



Next, off to downtown Montreal to get checked in to the hotel & go meet the fabulous @amanada11 for dinner at l'Académie on Crescent. Again, like meeting an old friend - she even brought wine, and a little gift - you guys, can you even imagine? Our conversation picked up from many mini-Twitter conversations we'd previously had. And she was exactly like I knew she would be: sweet, thoughtful, and intelligent. Guys: she's a doctor!! @Sabotek joined us there, and I hadn't engaged as much with her on Twitter before meeting her, and oh, is she FUNNY. Had me cracking up.



We left from dinner to meet @Sabotek's sister, @Sam_Cat, equally as funny as her big sis, and @Jump4Jay, whom I hadn't had the pleasure of previously meeting on Twitter. When he agreed with me that neither Timmy Ho's nor Starbucks could make as good a cup of coffee as good ol' homemade French-pressed, I was sold. I found him on Twitter and followed him then and there.



Next morning: game day!! Soooo excited. The second-to-none gorgeous and amazing @FlyersRule came to pick me up from the hotel, after having spent the previous day driving in from PHILADELPHIA. This girl doesn't mess around. She also came bearing gifts. So thoughtful. First time meeting in person, again, like old friends. This is going to be a recurring theme. She took
me to Old Montreal where we had lunch and girl talk, then took me to where I'd been dreaming of: the Bell Centre.


@FlyersRule played patient photographer as I had my picture taken from various angles with the

statues of the greats. I then dropped a gross amount of money at the
store. I had to have one of everything, including jerseys & foam fingers for my kids. It was like a CANDY STORE. But BETTER. @emihawk (sweet and perfect gentleman) met us there and went in to the store to have Kenny Dryden's name put on to his jersey. I practiced a little French with him, he practiced his English. @Anne_Laur joined us soon thereafter. She is the cutest thing you can imagine, and took the famous picture (famous? Why not) of me reaching up to kiss the giant poster of Markov in the Habs' store window. @guccipucciprada came too, all model-fabulous and excited for the Habs Hall of Fame tour. It's my one regret from the trip - I couldn't squeeze that in. I had to rush back to the hotel to get dressed and ready for the tweetup. Next time! And I'll do it right. I was so jealous when I saw all the pictures later on Facebook.

And then it was time - an hour or so before puck-drop we began to gather at Ye Olde Orchard for the Montreal @ Toronto game. The place was ridiculously jam-packed due to the Bon Jovi concert actually about to happen at the Bell Centre a few blocks away (our tweetup and the Bon Jovi contingent got a mention in the Montreal Gazette the following day, by the way). As soon as I was in the door, I spotted some Habs jerseys near the front. I

recognized sweetheart @Cathie_AK27 right away - and again, like an old friend after some of our Twitter chats. I was so excited to finally meet her! She introduced me to the vivacious and uber-friendly @MaryK_AK27, whom I hadn't yet met on Twitter but already recognized from the moment at the January Ottawa @ Montreal game, when she and Cathie got their closeup on CBC (and Cathie managed to turn to proudly show the camera that her

jersey bears Sergei Kostitsyn's name).

Among the other early arrivers was blogger and Habs fan extraordinaire @HendricksHockey, who also made the drive up from the States. Finally got to meet the adorable @EP31 too (who's so cute she inspires feelings of wanting to pop her into your pocket), and the famous @robertopanetta and his sweet wife @MeredithBedard.

The Bon Jovi riff-raff finally started vacating the premises to go to the concert, and we started filing into the back room to watch the REAL event. There were more than 50 of us there and I could hardly keep up with all the introductions, but I recognized the lovely @FlirtyJo, the sweet and amazing @IFC4 and @guyl4rj, the massively-muscled @mduchesneau, hilarious blogger @HabsLaughs, and another hilarious, genius blogger whom I'd been very remiss to not previously meet on Twitter, the inimitable,

fabulous @theactivestick.

Then, a little late but finally, my 'amigo del alma', the fantastic @kuyaz arrived. Exactly like he is on Twitter, he is friendly, engaging and awesome. Also brought me a gift. You guys. He even had a 'Veronica' tattoo on his forearm! Okay, so it's not because of me but because of a very important other Veronica, but still. Too cool.

Also finally arriving after expressing a 'maybe yes, maybe no' RSVP and I'm so glad he finally did, was the funny & sweet @theHabituals. His twitter avatar is of a 6-year old version of himself, but he's a little older than that in real life. @amanada11's buddy @michellesquared was another highlight introduction.

We watched the game in that packed room, and I can't tell you what a thrill it was, after years & years of being too far away from Montreal, to be somewhere where people were cheering and 'aaaawwww'ing right along with me to a Habs game, standing up to high-five all around with the Habs goals. Okay, so whatever, the Habs lost in a shootout to the crappy Leafs, but the Leafs were left out of the playoffs because they sucked so bad and we went on to almost make it to the Stanley Cup finals, so there.

I got about 2 hours of sleep that night but I just wanted to soak in my all-too-brief Montreal experience and was so happy to be with all these people I'd made friendships with on Twitter, and it is a weekend I'll never forget. Missing from the tweetup who I would have loved to meet were @beezee05, @yves_on_habs, @brirob9 and @smalrus. These guys are a staple on Twitter for all the Habs games & must-follows for Habs fans. And technically not a Habs fan but a hockey-blog wizard was sorely missed: @HockeyJoePHT.

I boarded a plane early that Sunday morning and it was over so fast. I hope to see everyone again sometime soon, be back in my beloved Montreal for much longer next time, and bring my mini-Habs fans in tow.

See you at the next #habstweetup! Until then, see you all on Twitter! #gohabsgo #isitOctoberyet <3

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