Arepas

These recipes are from The South American Table.  I love these.  These are made with cheese and are the Colombian version.  I will also give the instructions for the Venezualen version, which is thicker and I assume will be better for splitting and filling.

Masa de Arepa

Stir together 1 cup arepa flour (do not use masa harina for this recipe.  I used a brand named P.A.N. that I ordered on Amazon.) with 1/2 tsp salt and 1 1/2 cups hot water.  Stir together and let sit, covered, for five minutes.  Knead for 3 minutes.  It should be the consistency of mashed potatoes. 

Form into disks.  I divided my dough into 12 golf ball size balls.  Cut a sandwich baggie into 2 pieces, leaving one side connected.  Place the ball between the baggie pieces, then press into a disk about 3-4 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick.  (For the Venezualen version, make it 3/4 inch thick.)  I used my tortilla press to very gently press the dough, not using the handle.

Cook the arepas.  Heat and lightly oil a griddle.  Cook on med heat, flipping a few times, until golden brown.  This will take about 10 minutes.  (For the thicker Venezualen arepas, at this point put them in  a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.  They should sound hollow when you tap them.)

Split open and fill with butter, cream cheese or picadillo.

Arepas de Queso

Use the recipe for the masa de arepa and add 1 egg yolk, 2 tbsp softened butter, and 2 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese.  Knead into the dough.  Then cook as above.