Cottage Cheese Arepas Recipes

Steps:

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
• Stir together 2 1/2 cups lukewarm water and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a large bowl. Gradually add the corn meal into the water, using your fingers to stir and combine, until a soft and moist dough forms.
• Divide the dough into 8 golf ball-size balls and pat each into a patty about 5-inches wide and 1/4-inch-thick.
• Put a cube of mozzarella in the center of each patty. Fold the dough over the cheese, making sure the cheese is completely covered and sealed. Pat it back down until 3-inches wide and 1/2-inch-thick (see Cook's Note).
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat until shimmering. Working in batches, cook the corn patties, until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side (making sure the oil is hot for each batch). Transfer to a cooling rack set on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until the edges are crisp and golden, about 10 minutes.

Steps:

• Combine masa harina, margarine, salt, and cottage cheese with the hot water.
• Knead well after each addition until mixture resembles new play dough.
• Pinch off golf sized balls; press between two ziploc bags into 1/4 inch thick circles.
• Cook lightly on greased surface of griddle until lightly browned.
• Serve with butter and queso fresco.

Steps:

• Put cornmeal in a large bowl with salt and cheese. Put milk in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until steam rises, then add butter and stir until melted. Remove from heat and stir into cornmeal mixture until a thick batter is formed. Fold in the corn kernels, scallion, cilantro and chili if using.
• Let batter rest until it thickens into a soft dough, about 15 minutes. Gently form 3- to 4-inch balls from mixture and flatten with palm of your hand to a 1/2-inch-thick disk. (You can cover and refrigerate disks for a few hours if you like.)
• Heat oil in a large skillet and cook arepas, working in batches, until golden brown, about 5 minutes, then flip and cook for another 3 minutes on other side. When all arepas are cooked and cool enough to handle, carefully slice them through the middle. If desired, serve with butter or stuff with beans, vegetables or sour cream.

Steps:

• Place the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl and gradually add the warm water, mixing to form a stiff dough.
• Add the cheese and knead the dough for a few minutes then form into 4 balls.
• Flatten the balls to a thickness of about 1/2 inch.
• Heat oil in a large frying pan.
• Add the arepas and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until crisp and golden, turning 3 or 4 times.
• Drain on kitchen paper.
• To Serve - split the arepas in half, place on serving plates and garnish with avocado, tomato slices and olives.

Steps:

• Sift the all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour and salt into a large bowl. If bits of flour remain after sifting, dump those into the bowl as well. Evenly distribute the flour and salt with your fingers, if necessary.
• Spread your fingers apart and make a claw with one hand and start circling the flour mixture. Drizzle in the oil slowly with your other hand, while continuing to circle with your fingers to create little pea-sized clumps. Squeeze any larger chunks and separate them with your fingers.
• Pour about a couple of tablespoons of the warm water into a corner of the bowl and mix a mound of flour with your hand, staying in that corner, until the water is absorbed and a clump of dough forms. It should feel malleable but dry. Remove this dough to a work surface and repeat with another mound of flour, until you have a couple of tablespoons water left, each time removing the newly formed dough to the existing pile. When there is just a little flour left, add the water a teaspoon at a time, using just enough to gather most of the flour. You may not use all the water -- it's better for the dough to be too dry than too wet.
• Combine all the mounds of dough into one and knead on your work surface until it all comes together, 1 to 2 minutes. If the dough is too sticky, lightly dust the work surface with whole-wheat flour. If the dough is still crumbly, knead in a couple of drops of water until the dough holds together but is not sticky. The dough should be dry enough that you do not need to flour your work surface.
• Shape the dough into a vertical log and knead the dough a little at a time, starting at the top and working towards you: Fold over 1 inch and knead; then fold over 3 inches, knead again; fold over 4 inches and knead; and so on, until the dough accumulates on the sides, forming a horizontal log. Position the log vertically again and repeat this process 7 more times. Once you are done, the dough should be smooth and uniform.
• Roll the dough into a neat log and cut into 6 equal pieces, each weighing a little less than 4 ounces. Working with 1 piece at a time, knead the edges of the dough into the center, turning the dough a little after each knead until turned 360 degrees. Gather all of the edges and bring them together in the center, then push the center down gently to resemble a flattened soup dumpling that's as round as possible. Flatten it slightly, remembering which side has the gathered ends -- we'll call this side the "tail" and the more smooth side, the "face."
• Heat a medium cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat or a nonstick skillet over medium. Lightly oil the cast-iron with a paper towel. If you have a good nonstick skillet, no need to oil it.
• Roll out each arepa, tail-side down, to about 6 inches in diameter. Cook in the skillet, face-side down, until the face is opaque, 35 to 40 seconds. All we want is a very superficial, even cook on the skin -- it should be mostly pale but a couple of little light brown freckles are okay. Flip and cook until the bottom is completely opaque with some larger golden brown spots, 90 seconds to 2 minutes. A little char is normal. Flip a final time and watch your arepa puff up! If you see a small hole in the arepa, push down with a spatula to trap the air in. When the arepa has puffed up, about 30 seconds, remove to a towel or napkin and wrap to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining arepas and serve immediately.
• For serving, you can cut the arepas into half-moons and stuff them or you can slice them into two rounds and sandwich your filling between the rounds. My favorite fillings are black beans and queso duro (a salty, hard white cheese), or ham, crema and queso duro. I also like to stir together some crema with grated queso duro to spread inside the arepas. We also serve plain arepas as sides for other meals.

Steps:

• Stir water and salt together in a bowl. Gradually stir corn meal into water with your fingers until mixture forms a soft, moist, malleable dough.
• Divide dough into 8 golf ball-size balls and pat each one into a patty about 3/8-inch thick.
• Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Working in batches, cook corn patties in hot oil until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer cooked arepas to a paper towel-lined plate to drain until cool enough to handle.
• Slice halfway through each cake horizontally with a thin serrated knife to form a pita-like pocket.

Steps:

• Mix water, corn meal, mozzarella cheese, butter, and salt together in a large bowl. Knead until mixed well and the dough has a soft consistency. Form balls the size of a medium orange and place them between 2 sheets of plastic wrap. Flatten with a rolling pin to your desired thickness.
• Cut the dough into circles using a cereal bowl or drinking glass, lip-down, through the plastic wrap. Remove the plastic wrap and remove excess dough.
• Coat a griddle with cooking spray and heat to medium-high. Add arepas and grill until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Serve immediately.