Calzones

Calzones

Today I realized that I officially want time to freeze.  I cannot seem to grasp that my Cole will be turning 4 years old on Saturday.  When did this sweet baby boy get so big??

Cole Rylee

When I asked Cole how old he was, he held up three fingers and then proceeded to tell me that he was going to be 4 this weekend where he wanted a party and balloons with a plane cake-- a green plane cake to be specific.  Seconds later he said, Mommy and then I will be 5!!   Seriously, is he trying to make me cry??  

To honor Cole this week, we are using some of his favorite ingredients and making the treats he loves best.  Today is all about Provolone cheese.  Yes, you read that correctly!  Cole is OBSESSED with Provolone cheese.  I usually buy a package of it when I go to Costco and try to spread it out through the month, and everyday Cole asks for a piece of big cheese.  This is what he calls it since it is much larger than a slice of American cheese or string cheese --all this to say, Cole had a slice of provolone cheese while I used the rest in our dinner for tonight.

Simply put, calzones are stuffed pizzas ... you can be as creative as you want with them or just go with the basic sauce and cheese.  We went with the basic tonight!

I prepared my dough earlier this evening by mixing 1 c water, 1/3 c olive oil, 2 tsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, 3 c flour, and a few dashes each of oregano, basil and garlic powder.  I then added 2 tsp yeast.  I mixed all together until the dough formed, kneaded it and let it rise for 45 minutes.

While the dough was rising, I made my sauce.  I don't ever buy pre-made sauces, mainly because I figure it is less expensive and more creative doing it yourself!  I use the base tomato sauce and depending upon the spices on hand and desired flavor, your own tomato based sauce can be created.  For tonight, I used one can of tomato sauce, parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic powder and red pepper.  I mixed this all together and set it aside.  

When making calzones, you can use your hands as the sealing tool, or you can use this calzone press.  Now that I have used this, I don't think i'll EVER go back!!

After the dough had risen, I divided it into 3 pieces (how ever many calzones you plan to make) and rolled the dough out.

I then placed the dough over the calzone mold ...

I filled the mold with 2 tbsp of sauce and 2 pieces of torn provolone cheese.

Once the calzone mold is filled, fold the press in half ...

and press firmly to ensure that the dough has sealed.

Once the seal has been created, gently tear off the remaining dough from the sides of the mold and pull the top half of the press back to remove the calzone.

Now place the calzone on your pizza stone or baking sheet.  While you finish your remaining calzones, make sure your oven is set at 500 degrees.

Now that all three of my calzones have been made, I topped them with olive oil and dusted them with some parsley and parmesan cheese.

It is now time to place in your 500 degree oven for 12 minutes.  Once they have cooked, remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before serving as the filling will be very hot!!

You can warm extra sauce for dipping too, enjoy!!