These calzones are not so hard to make and give you a good thing to stash in the freezer for nights when cooking dinner isn’t a reality. The filling is very versatile. Like ravioli, I use calzones as a catch-all for anything that is seasonal. Since we have a new supply of fresh, homemade sausage in the house, this time I used Ryan’s bulk Italian and spinach for the filling. (Look for a recap of SausageFest2010 soon!)
Makes about 8 calzones. Recipe easily doubles.
Calzone dough:
4 cups bread flour
2 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups warm water
corn meal for dusting the pan
- In the bowl of your mixer or by hand, mix the dry ingredients. Add in the wet.
- Stir and knead until the dough comes together and becomes elastic, about 10 minutes.
- Cover and let rise for about 1 1/2 hours.
Basic cheese filling:
1 lb. homemade ricotta
2 cups mozzarella, coarsely chopped if homemade, shredded if it’s a harder mozzarella
about 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 egg
1/4 tsp. salt
a few grinds of white pepper
optional: fresh herbs – parsley, oregano, or basil
- Prepare cheeses and garlic.
- Mix it all together.
For spinach and sausage filling:
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
about 4 cups of spinach, washed and coarsely chopped
red pepper flakes
olive oil
- Prepare the basic cheese filling. (Don’t stir in the garlic. You’ll want to cook it for a few minutes. See step 3 below.)
- In a large skillet, drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil and begin to brown the sausage. (If you have Italian sausage in its casing, just remove from casing and crumble up with the spoon as you cook.) cook for about 10 minutes or until nicely brown. Continue to break the sausage up with your spoon. You may need to drain some of the liquid from the pan.
- Add garlic and red pepper flakes (to your liking) and stir around for about one minute.
- Add spinach and stir until wilted.
- When this mixture has cooled, mix it in with the cheese filling
Assembling the calzones:
- Prepare your area. Place parchment paper on two baking sheets. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Get out a large cutting board, scale, and bench knife. Place a little parchment on your scale and zero out. Sprinkle your cutting board with flour and dust your hands. (Remember, during this process, dough sticks to dough. If your hands get too sticky, ‘wash’ with flour.) Continue reading “Make and Freeze: Calzones”