Roasted Vegetable Calzones

We are finally back in the kitchen. That was the first room I wanted unpacked:) It is nice having a new kitchen to cook in. Sorry I haven’t posted pictures of our new house…I will get them up shortly. It is a process getting settled. We are getting closer though.

We made a trip to the Farmer’s Market on Saturday morning and found the best veggies and fruit! We made Roasted Vegetable Calzones to put the veggies to good use. I made a homemade tomato sauce and roasted the veggies, Josh also cooked up some sausage to put in his calzone. The dough was really easy to make. We will have to do these again!

The Roasted Veggie Platter. The choices were endless!

My homemade tomato sauce!

Josh working the dough.

Filling my calzone. The more veggies the better!

Ready for the oven!

Golden brown and ready to eat!

Basic Dough Recipe for Calzones

1 package of dry active yeast
1 ¼ cup luke warm water
Pinch of sugar
1 T olive oil
1 ¼ tsp. salt
3 ½ cups flour (I use better for bread flour)
Cornmeal

1. Dissolve the yeast in warm water, sprinkle with pinch of sugar. Let stand for five minutes.
2. Pour yeast water into your Kitchenaid Mixer, add in olive oil. Mix briefly. Add in flour and salt. Mix until combined and switch to your dough hook. Let the machine knead the dough for about 4-5 minutes. Take the dough ball out and make sure it is smooth and not sticky!
3. Place the dough in a oiled bowl. Turn it over to oil both sides. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth/towel. Let rise for about 40 minutes or until doubled in bulk.
4. Divide the dough in half, place the dough in separate oiled bowls. Let rise again for about 20 minutes.
5. Now divide the dough into four portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into four circles. Have fun by tossing it in the air and stretching it too:)
6. Add your sauce, toppings, and cheese to one side.
7. Fold the dough over and pinch the calzone so it is tightly closed.
8. Brush the calzone lightly with olive oil. We also brushed it with an egg wash to help them brown.
9. Bake for about 30 minutes at 450 degrees on a hot pizza stone sprinkled with cornmeal.
10. Eat up!

Tomato Sauce
My sauce is very basic. I saute onions, garlic, fennel, crushed red pepper…and then I add in tomatoes. (diced or crushed from a can are fine…or you can use chopped fresh tomatoes.) I throw in a couple tablespoons of tomato paste to thicken the sauce. I really don’t measure anything. I just eyeball it. I also add in fresh basil, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

Calzone Fillings
Use whatever veggies you like! We roasted eggplant, zucchini, green and purple peppers, and onions. We also threw in artichoke hearts and fresh basil. Josh likes to add sausage too! And of course, don’t forget the cheese!! We used mozzarella…and I think Josh even threw some feta into his!! Get creative!!