Saturday, May 30, 2009

Calzones for Dinner

I am SO TIRED of making chicken for dinner!!!! I guess it is my own fault - I'm not one of those people who can look in the cupboard and just whip up a creative dinner. But, the other night while watching "Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives" with my husband, I saw this basic recipe and created it at home really easily- much to the appreciation of the men in the household (who are also tired of having chicken for dinner!).
INGREDIENTS:

1 Package Bridgeford frozen bread dough
cornmeal
3 tomatoes
1 small red onion
2 cloves garlic
deli ham, sliced into small pieces
grated cheese
balsamic salad dressing
pesto (I used the pre-made type)

1.) The morning you are planning on making the calzones, get one loaf of dough out of the freezer and set out on the counter covered with a towel to defrost. (1 loaf made about 6 smallish calzones - enough to feed myself, my husband and our 3 year old. Use more dough if you need more calzones!)

2.) Cut up tomatoes, onion, and garlic, stir together and let set in the fridge.

3.) Spread a bit of cornmeal on a flat surface and roll out a bit of the defrosted dough on it (Aim for a circle about 5-6 inches in diameter). The cornmeal will get pushed into the dough and result in a nice crispy crust on your calzone.

4.) On one half of your circle of dough, spread a bit of pesto and place a dollop of the tomato mixture, some ham and cheese, and sprinkle lightly with balsamic dressing. Fold the other half of the dough over the "guts", making a half-circle shape.

5.) Place your calzones on a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake in a 375 degree oven for about 8 minutes - until crust is very lightly browned. Check regularly because it will be easy to overcook the thin crust!)

These are super yummy and really kid-friendly. Moses loved making these with me - it would also be a fun lunch. Enjoy!

2 comments:

emgray said...

Yum! Those sound delicious! We love Bridgeford dough and my freezer is never without it. I will have to try calzones next time. Thanks for the idea.

pam said...

I've been wanting to make these since i saw this post. When i finally got my act together to look for the Bridgeford dough, they were out of it at the store! I finally picked some up today, but since I don't have any pesto in the house, i'm gonna make them with pizza sauce, pepperoni and black olives...i'll keep you posted. Thanks for the idea!