Hallaca

In Venezuelan cuisine, an Hallaca (alt. spelling, "hayaca") typically involves a mixture of beef, pork, chicken, raisins, capers, and olives wrapped in cornmeal dough, folded within plantain leaves, tied with strings, and boiled or steamed afterwards. It is typically served during the Christmas holiday. In the Dominican Republic it is known as guanimos and is made of cornflour and stuffed with ground meat; in Puerto Rico it is known as pasteles, a mixer of plantains, bananas and other starchy root vegetables mashed into masa stuffed and wrapped in plantain leaf. In Trinidad and Tobago, hallaca is known as pastelle but often confused with empanadas.