ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!

ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!
ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!

 
Have you ever made Calzones at home? Calzone recipes often intimidate home cooks. But they’re as simple as putting together a homemade pizza. The only difference is ABK’s Homemade Calzones are folded up into a neat little package that are meant for one.
 
ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!
 
 
I love calzones because they can be served up a few different ways. We love to eat them for dinner as a main dish with a green salad, or they’re also a fun hearty appetizer. When I serve ABK’s Homemade Calzones as an appetizer, I cook and let cool for about ten minutes to let the fillings settle, then slice into strips and serve with a bowl of sauce in the middle of a platter. Can you say crowd pleaser??
ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!
ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!
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 Speaking of crowd pleasers, the original calzone recipe came from my sister in law,  Sheri. You’ve seen her amazing recipes on ABK in the past. A few of my go-to recipes of Sheri’s are Southwest Salad with Cilantro Honey Lime Dressing,  Sheri’s Creamy Southern Mac and Cheese, Southern Peanut Butter Pie with Homemade Fudge Topping and Sheri’s Pomegranate Salsa.
There’s something fun and a little out of the ordinary about everyone personalizing their own calzone and then waiting for it to bake up in the oven for dinner. It’s a great party dish if you’r organized and get the dough made early in the day. You can have guests help you cut up the filings and then roll out their own calzones.  My favorite filling combo is sautéed mushroom and onion, with fresh spinach,  grated Mozzarella and a bit of Ricotta cheese! Hope you have a great weekend 🙂
ABK's Homemade Calzones- Updated!
 
 
 

ABK’s Homemade Calzones

5 from 2 votes
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Author: Si Foster
Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients 

Dough:

  • 1 tablespoon yeast
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 cups warm water, divided
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup butter or oil, canola or olive or a mixture of both *
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 4 1/2 – 5 cups cups flour, plus more for rolling out

Sauce:

  • 1 14 oz can tomato sauce, I like the Thick and Chunky Tomato Sauce for this recipe
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • herbs, 3 tablespoons chopped each, fresh or
  • 2 teaspoons dry oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dry thyme
  • 1 teaspoon basil
  • 1 teaspoon rosemary
  • 1 teaspoon dry sage
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 to mato, cut into chunks (about 1 cup)

assorted fillings:

  • 1 lb Grated mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese,1 cup Ricotta cheese
  • Chopped olives, chopped onion, sautéed, fresh spinach, 1-2 lb sauteed mushrooms, Canadian bacon, pepperoni etc.

Instructions

  • Place yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar into 1/2 cup warm water in large bowl or stand mixer bowl. Let stand 5 minutes.
  • Add additional 1 1/2 cups warm water, 1/4 cup sugar, butter and/or oil, salt and 3 cups of the flour.
  • Turn mixer on low using paddle and mix for about 2 minutes. Add flour, a half cup at a time until dough is no longer sticky. Change out paddle for the dough hook if available, otherwise, use large spoon and mix.
  • Mix for a total of about 4-5 minutes on low speed. All flour should be mixed into dough and the dough should have a satiny finish, not sticky, but still a soft dough.
  • Using a spatula, scrap down the sides of the bowl and bread hook or paddle. Spray the sides of the bowl lightly with cooking spray.
  • Cover bowl with plastic wrap or light towel. Set aside for about 1 hour to rise in a warm place.
  • While dough is rising, mix together sauce ingredients in a small pan on stove, simmer for about 10 minutes, then turn off heat and cover with lid.
  • Cut up all of the vegetables and meats for filling, grate cheese and set aside to fill calzones.
  • After the dough has risen, place on floured surface Roll out to a approximately a 9×13 rectangle, cut or break off the dough into 6 even pieces. Let rest for about 15 minutes.
  • Roll out dough into 8” circles. Put desired fillings into each circle, covering one half of the circle (do not place the filing too close to the edge of the dough circle, you ‘ll need to leave enough of an edge so you can crimp and seal the edges)
  • Fold the other side of the dough over, crimp edges, and seal.
  • If you like a shiny finish on your crust, brush with beaten egg.
  • Bake on a pizza stone or a cookie sheet at 425-450 degrees for about 15-18 minutes or until calzone is golden on the outside.
  • Serve with sauce.

Notes

*Optional method making dough with cracked wheat- purchase cracked wheat for recipe: ½ cup cracked wheat (found in baking section, I purchase Bob’s Red Mill brand)The original recipe called for using Cracked Wheat in the dough. I have found that many readers have had a difficult time finding cracked wheat or have been intimidated to use cracked wheat, so I’ve modified the recipe. If you would like to use cracked wheat, follow these directions-Boil 2 cups water, add 1/2 cup cracked wheat. Cook as you would oatmeal for about 5 minutes until the wheat absorbs the water and is soft. Set aside to cool for at least ten minutes. Follow the directions on the recipe but omit the 11/2 additional cups of water. Use 1/2 cup water to soften the yeast and then add the cracked wheat mixture to the dough. If the dough is a bit dry, add 1/4 cup of warm water to the dough. -The leftover calzones should cool completely and then be wrapped up individually and placed in refrigerator. When ready to re heat, place on cookie sheet in oven at 325 for about 15 minutes or until heated through.-Filings can consist of almost anything. If you are using mushrooms or onions, I suggest sautéing first to remove excess water. Spinach seems to be okay fresh and does not need to be sautéed first. Pineapple tends to release too much juice as well so I don’t recommend filling the calzones with pineapple.-Herbs are listed with fresh and dried measurements. If you have access to fresh, wonderful! Fresh is always best. This recipe also works well with dried herbs. I’ve also used a mixture of dried and fresh. -The original recipe calls for butter, but I like a mixture of butter and oil. I use half butter and half canola oil.

Did you make this recipe?

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