More guilty pleasures: calzone!

Mmmmm. I have waxed poetic about my love for pizza. Guess what's almost as delicious? CALZONES.

That's right - homemade calzones! With some tasty store-bought pizza dough, you can whip this up in about half an hour. And it's simply delicious.

The recipe comes from Epicurious - I made it almost exactly as written. Click here for the original recipe. Here's what I did:

Wash and spin your arugula - I used one bunch from my CSA box; the recipe calls for 5 oz aka 8 cups of baby arugula. I don't believe mine was baby - but it was perfect.

That's where the magic happens. Now that I've got the weekly box, this salad spinner sees plenty of action. I use it probably three times a week. This sucker has lasted for years, and I love the auto-stop button on the top. Makes fresh greens ... fresh and easy!

Post spin.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Get your arugula ready. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. Add one minced garlic clove (I used one cube of frozen garlic from TJ's), and cook for one minute. Add the arugula, stirring almost constantly, until wilted. It will reduce significantly in volume:

Yes, that is one whole bunch of arugula! What it lacks in volume, it makes up for in peppery, fresh taste. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, then transfer to a colander and press to eliminate as much liquid as possible. Chop coarsely.

Make the filling: In a medium bowl, combine 6 oz (2/3 cup) of fresh ricotta, 3 oz (or a bit more - I used probably 4 oz?) of grated mozzarella, 2 tablespoons parmesan, 1 egg yolk, salt, and pepper to taste. Add the chopped arugula and mix well.


Prepare the calzones. The recipe tells you to split one pound of dough into fourths; we, however, are more piggy than that - I split ours into thirds.

That is plain Trader Joe's dough, from the refrigerated section. I swear by all of their dough offerings. I split that ball into three separate sections, then rolled/stretched each one out into a "circle" about 9 inches in diameter. Use plenty of flour to keep the dough from sticking while you roll and stretch. Place one third of the filling in the center of each, then fold over the dough to form a moon-shape and press the edges to seal. Here's the cool part: starting on one end of the dough, stretch and tuck the edge back in toward the calzone, twisting along the perimeter to form a rope along the entire edge. Use a pinching/rolling motion. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until golden and puffed. Cool on a baking sheet for few minutes. Serve with a side of pizza sauce or marinara.



That was a good Saturday night meal! Perfect with a glass of wine and a loved one.