Simple arepas

This is a recipe I got from a great Venezuelan lady.  I have modified it slightly to work for my tastes.  If you are in the Raleigh NC area look up bracci's.

Serves:1

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup PAN pre-cooked white corn meal (GF).
• 1/2 cup water
• touch of salt

Instructions:

• Add water and salt to a bowl mix quickly
• Add the corn meal and mix with your hands until it approaches a 'playdough' like consistency
• Note that if the consistency is not right add a touch of cornmeal or water.  (Not thick enough cornmeal, too thick water)
• Once mixed completely then let sit 2-5 minutes
• Grab a handful of the mix and roll into a ball.  
• Place ball on some wax/parchment paper and press down softly until a disc is formed.   This disc should not be too thin, possible a little less then a fingers width in depth.
• If the disk is showing 'cracks' on the edge then you did not have enough water in the mix add a couple drops and redo until this resolves.
• This should make two discs.
• Place some parchment paper on a pizza stone (I prefer pizza stones for making bread products)
• Cook for 30 minutes at 350.  
• The arepa then can be cut to produce a pocket.  note that the inside may seem a little gummy this is too taste.   This is a proper Venezuelan style.
• If you prefer crispier arepa's, I cook mine for 45 minutes at 385, this leaves almost no gumminess on inside, and a nice crispy exterior.

Fillings:

• Can be anything.  Note that sweet fillings will not be standard Venezuelan but don't shy away from fun :)
• My favorites so far are:
• Breakfast:   Scrambled eggs, Bacon, sausage, and a spot of cheese
• Lunches and Dinners:   Any ground or diced meat with veggies and cheese.   I typically spice out the meal with south American or middle eastern flavors.

Alternate uses for this recipe:

• The base arepa recipe if pressed much thinner can be made to an empanada or rolled around a sausage or other meats to form something like a taquito.   This recipe can be modified as needed to make hundreds of different meals, making this very flexible and a great base meal.