Zesty Vegetable Calzone

With a simple salad, Italian dressing, hot from the oven.  Click for larger image.

OK, so yesterday was stock-up day at the market, and now on to fresh inspiration.  Here is a light, vegetarian interpretation of the Italian classic.  Oh, to have access to a wood-burning pizza oven right now...  I have opted for a quick sauce (OK, "quick" being a relative term); if you have a garden, tons of tomatoes and lots of time, peel and cook from scratch.  Fresh basil was spotty in the market yesterday, so we're working with dried herbs today.  This is another "blank canvas" sort of meal, as you can play with the ingredients as you like.  Pepperoni, sausage, seasoned ground beef and the like star in more traditional preparations.  Also, in studying traditional recipes almost none of them use a sauce, but I'm going to change that.  Pizza needs sauce.  Add a light green salad, and you've got a great meal.

THE RECIPE - yield 2 calzones

THE SAUCE

1 T EV olive oil
1 medium onion, small dice
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T dry sherry
1 - 15oz. can tomato sauce
1 - 6oz. can tomato paste
1 T dried basil leaves
1 T dried oregano leaves
1/2 t crushed red chilies
Sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste

In a medium sauce pan, saute onion until translucent; add garlic and cook for an additional minute.  Deglaze pan with the sherry, and simmer for 3 minutes.  Add tomatoes, herbs and chili flakes; season with salt and pepper.  Simmer for approximately 45 minutes.

THE CRUST

1 Cup warm water, 110°F
1 t granulated white sugar
1 t sea salt
1 packet active dry yeast
3 Cups all-purpose or bread flour
2 T EV olive oil

Stir sugar and salt into warm water; sprinkle yeast over the surface.  In about ten minutes, the surface should be bubbly and frothy as the yeast colony gives up its life for the sake of good bread!  Sift flour into a mixing bowl, add yeast mixture and oil.  Stir until a rough dough is formed.  Turn out onto a well-floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, approximately 5 minutes.  Place in an oiled mixing bowl and cover with a dish towel and allow to rise in a 70°F area for approximately 60 minutes, or until volume is doubled.

Divide the dough into two parts; roll into balls then roll out into large thin circles.  Top with sauce, fill and bake according to directions below.

THE FILLING

As I mentioned earlier, this is open to your own interpretation as far as filling ingredients go; but here is what I used --

6 pearl onions, sliced
6 scallions, bulbs and leaves, sliced
4 Roma tomatoes, cored (place the seeds and "guts" into the simmering pizza sauce) and sliced
2 large jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced
6 - 8 broccoli florettes, chopped up into tiny pieces
6 mushrooms, sliced
1 Italian squash, cut in half, thinly sliced
(I must add if there were nice fresh basil or thyme leaves available, these would have been a welcome addition.)

Give the vegetables a quick saute over medium high heat to release any extra water, about 5 minutes.  You will be "roasting" the vegetables in preparation for the filling.

Click for larger image. 

 1 T olive oil to brush the crust (because you can never have too much olive oil.)

1 8oz. package shredded Mozzarella cheese

1egg and 2 T water scrambled well, for egg wash

THE PREP

Preheat oven to 375°F; cover a sheet pan with parchment paper and pan release spray.

Brush the two rounds with olive oil; add pizza sauce, spreading out within 1/2" of edges.

  Layer on cheese,

 

then vegetable filling on one half of the round.

  Brush inside edges with egg wash and fold the dough over.  Press the edges with a fork to seal and give a "scalloped" effect.  Brush the top with more of the egg wash.  Cut three slits in the top to release steam.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until crust is browned, vegetables are tender and cheese is melted.