Empanadillas Gallegas
Empanada Gallega is a large savory pie from Galicia, Spain, traditionally stuffed with tuna, hard-boiled eggs, and chopped olives. Chef Katie Button makes small hand-held versions, empanadillas, and mixes the filling with sofrito, an aromatic vegetable base of long-cooked tomatoes, onions, and garlic. She wraps it up in a pastry dough enriched with lard, which she says makes an incredibly flaky crust. Freezing the lard and then grating it allows you to easily incorporate it into the dough without it melting, and results in more flaky, puffy layers of pastry in each bite.