These plump, fried hors d'oeuvres, a seafood variation on Chile's signature baked onion-and-meat-filled empanadas, are hot and juicy. Have plenty of napkins ready.

Make dough:  Stir salt into hot water until dissolved.

1. Sift 2.5 cups of flour, baking powder, and sugar into a large bowl, then make a well in center and add lard and 2 tablespoons of butter.
2. Stir salted water into well with a wooden spoon, melting lard and butter, then stir flour into liquid, adding a little water if necessary, to form a soft and pliable dough.
3. Knead dough on an unfloured surface until smooth and glossy, 3 to 5 minutes (dough will be soft and slightly sticky).
4. Cover dough with a kitchen towel (not terry cloth).

Make filling:

1. Cook clams in wine in a medium saucepan, covered, over medium-high heat until just opened wide, about 5 minutes (discard any that remain unopened).
2. Transfer clams to a bowl with a slotted spoon, then cook mussels in same liquid, covered, stirring once or twice, until opened, 3 to 5 minutes (discard unopened ones).
3. Add mussels to clams and strain cooking liquid through a paper-towel-lined sieve into a bowl.

• Equipment: a 4-inch round cookie cutter; a deep-fat thermometer
• Accompaniment: tomato salsa
   

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