Friday, April 10, 2009

Calzone - Super Easy!!

I bought whole wheat pizza dough from Trader Joe's the other day and when I was about to make a pizza for the billionth time I had an epiphany......calzones are made out of pizza dough! I haven't had a calzone since the 80's; so those suckers have been way off my radar forever. I had completely forgotten how delicious a calzone could be. I must admit, my first attempt at calzones was off the charts - so I feel compelled to share what I did. 

Here's what I used that was store bought: 
~1 bag of whole wheat pizza dough (enough to make one large pizza pie)  from Trader Joe's
~1 jar pizza sauce from Trader Joe's 
~Vegan cheese (I only had cheddar in the house, but it tasted great); I use Follow Your Heart.

In a food processor I coarsely chopped (amount is estimated): 
~2 handfuls of baby portabella mushrooms
~4 tablespoons of sun dried tomatoes (in oil)
~1/3 bag of fresh spinach 
~2 handfuls of fresh broccoli florets 
~2 handfuls of pine nuts
~salt, pepper, garlic powder and basil (to taste)

On a floured surface, I rolled out the dough and separated into four pieces. I scooped the mixture onto one side of the dough. I really piled it on. I added on top:
~shredded cheese (I shredded about 1/3 of the block of cheese for all 4 calzones.)

Then I folded over the dough and pinched it closed. I placed the calzones on a non-stick pizza pan and squished them making the calzones more flat, which expanded their surface area.

In a small bowl I combined olive oil and garlic powder then coated the tops of the calzones with this using a brush. 

I baked them at 425 degrees for approximately 15 to 20 minutes. I took them out when they became slightly brown and no longer doughy. 

I served them with:
~pizza sauce (warmed up first) poured over the top. 
~sliced avocado and tomato on top with salt and pepper to taste. 

1 comment:

Chelsea said...

Yum! I actually made a giant calzone the first time I tried to make pizza with TJ's dough... I totally fucked it up and just flopping it over was the only thing I could do to salvage it. Now I make calzones on purpose!