It’s pizza night!!! I love pizza nights at home because it’s one night that our whole family cooks together. We make our own crust, roll out our own pizzas and top individually with our favorite toppings, but this week I decided to switch it up a little and get creative! At first I was thinking stuffed crust, but that conjured up an image of pizza pockets and then the light bulb went on—calzones! After a little research on technique plus a few tips & tricks I jumped in with both feet and my calzones turned out amazing! Definitely worth the time and effort involved!
- 1 cup water (105-110 degrees F)
- 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp sugar
- 3 cups bread flour, plus additional for dusting & rolling out dough
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 tsp water
- Favored pizza toppings and sauces!! (marinara sauce, pizza sauce, alfredo sauce, ranch dressing, olive oil, black or green olives, sausage, pepperonis, mushrooms, diced tomatoes, green peppers, mozzarella cheese etc.)
- Combine water, yeast, salt and sugar in the bowl of a KitchenAid mixer, stir to dissolve and set aside for 15 minutes.
- After time has elapsed add flour and mix on speed 2 until dough is smooth and elastic to the touch. Add more flour by the tbsp if dough is too sticky. It should form a ball on the dough hook when it is fully combined and you should be able to handle it without it sticking to your fingers.
- Spray a large bowl with cooking spray or coat with olive oil. Form dough into a ball, rotate in bowl to grease all sides, then cover and set aside in a warm area free from draft to rise for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, punch down dough, re-shape into a ball and quarter it.
- Shape each section into a separate ball, place on a cookie sheet and cover lightly with wax paper and allow each to rise for an additional 15 minutes.
- During this second rise, preheat oven to 400 degrees F and lightly dust the area you’ll be using to roll out your dough with flour and set out your desired items for stuffing your calzone.
- When dough has risen for the second time, gently roll out each section into a 10-12 inch round circle.
- On one half of each circle place sauce, toppings and cheese.
- Fold over the remaining half of circle and gently twist edges over and press down to seal the pizza pocket or using a fork gently crimp the edges closed along the seam.
- Place on a cookie sheet lightly sprinkled with cornmeal (to prevent sticking), brush with egg wash and make 1-2 small incisions on the top of your calzones.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a nice golden brown.
- Serve & enjoy!
Make sure you check out my other easy recipes!
This recipe may be linked at I Should Be Mopping the Floor, Two Maids Milking, The Saturday Evening Pot, Permanent Posies, 33 Shades of Green, Blackberry Vine , Polka Dots on Parade, Southern Lovely, Crystal & Comp, Tatertots & Jello
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