Turkey, Sweet Potato, and Cranberry Empanadas

As someone who sometimes celebrates Thankgiving sans turkey [insert GASP here], I'm always looking for new and different ways to incorporate said bird into my recipes around this time of year.

Recently, while trying out different Filipino empanada recipes for a little project I've been working on, I started thinking about the raisins sometimes seen in Filipino, Spanish, and Mexican empanadas. (Spain and Mexico both have had quite the influence on Filipino cuisine via colonialism and the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade, and empanadas happen to be a tasty result of that Spanish/Mexican influence).

So, while considering raisins, the dominoes started to fall.

For a change of pace and a different kind of sweetness, I thought of using dried cranberries in place of the raisins. And with the dried cranberries, turkey soon came to mind--I'd use ground turkey instead of beef or pork. And finally, because sweet potatoes (AKA Kamote) are used quite often in Filipino cooking, they were another logical addition for me.

Suddenly, without intending to, I had stumbled upon a Thanksgiving-themed empanada. Eureka! It was kinda like the time I had stumbled upon a Groundhog Day-themed adobo. OK, so that probably never happened.

Nevertheless, these empanadas are like Thanksgiving squished into a conveniently parceled pie. With these handy portable turnovers, you can now take Thanksgiving anywhere! Take that, iPad!