Pastelitos De Carne (Meat Pastries)

Today I am making Pastelitos De Carne.  These meat pastries are delicious and almost like the ones you buy at the bakeries in Miami.

For the meat filling I used the same recipe as I did for the Papas Rellenas.  You can also use the classic Cuban Picadillo, if you have some left over.

Ingredients:
Meat Filling or Left over Picadillo (Recipe for Meat filling below)
1 Package Peperidge Farms Puff Pastry Sheets
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 egg
1 tablespoon water

Meat Filling Ingredients:
1/2 pound ground beef
half an onion minced
3 cloves garlic finely minced
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon cumin
1/2 small can of tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup beef broth

Directions:
Brown ground beef with minced onion and garlic, drain excess fat and add oregano, cumin, beef broth,  tomato paste, salt and pepper, combine well. Cook for about 15 minutes over medium heat. Let the meat cool off to room temperature.


 Pastelitos Directions:
Thaw Puff pastry in the refrigerator over night or on the counter top for a couple of hours.
Lightly beat egg and tablespoon water in a small bowl and set aside
Lightly spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray
Remove pastry from package 
Place one sheet of pastry on greased cookie sheet
With a spoon, place meat mixture on the pastry sheet in rounds about 1 inch apart
(should get 9  mounds of meat on the sheet)
Place the 2nd sheet of puff pastry on top
With a sharp knife cut in between the meat mounds and press pastry together with fingers to seal
NOTE: (The pastelitos de carne you get in the bakeries in Miami are usually round but I prefer to cut these in squares so non of the pastry is wasted.)
Spread out the 9 pastries on cookie sheet 
Brush each with egg wash
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes
While the pastries bake make a simple syrup by placing 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan over medium heat until melted and it has become syrupy
Keep syrup warm while the pastries finish baking
Remove pastries from oven after 25 minutes of baking and brush them with the simple syrup
Place back in oven and bake for another 5-7 minutes.
Remove from oven let cool for a couple of minutes and enjoy.