Meatball Calzones

Hot gooey cheese and meatballs folded inside a soft and chewy pizza crust. 

I love pizza.  I love making homemade pizza too, but my oven sucks.  I live in an apartment so I don't have my dream oven and gradually my current oven has become worse and worse.  It still works for many things and breads and pizzas turn out okay if I bake them on an AirBake pan, but I can't use my baking stone anymore :(  The problem is that breads burn on the bottom before they start to brown on top.  The way I've dealt with this is just baking breads and pizzas on one of my AirBake cookie sheets in the center of the oven. It works and I still enjoy my baked products, but they just don't get the same crisp/crunchy-ness as when I use the stone.

Now that I've complained....let's get to calzones. I like to think of calzones as individual pizzas folded in half.  Some people say that there should be no sauce inside the calzone, but I say, "do whatever you want".  Personally I put a little inside but kept most for dipping.  As for my pizza sauce, I make an easy marinara out of tomato paste.  It's easy and inexpensive.  I always keep tomato paste stocked in my pantry (it's great for so many things. Have you seen my Homemade Bloody Mary Mix or my Simple Pasta Sauce?).

Easy Marinara Sauce

1 6oz can tomato paste
1-2 cups water
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp dried minced onions
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Parmesan (optional)

Mix the tomato paste with water until it is the consistency you like.  Stir in the herbs and spices and let sit for about 1 hour.  You may need to add more water to get it to the right consistency.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  Just microwave to heat or enjoy cold or at room temperature.  Once again, do what you like it's pizza there shouldn't be so many rules.

Meatball Calzones

Ingredients:

16 oz (1 lb or 453g--I usually round up to 500g) pizza dough
15-20 pre-cooked Italian meatballs, split in half (Check out my Slow Cooker Meatballs)
Mozzarella, shredded
Easy Marinara Sauce

Start with your favorite pizza dough.  After mixing and kneading allow to rise for 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in bulk.  Separate into 4 roughly equal pieces and roll into balls.  Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Using one ball of dough at a time, roll/press into about a 6-9in circle (like a pizza).

Spread a spoon-full of marinara onto half of the circle.  Top with 1/4 of the meatballs and a hand-full of cheese then fold the other half over (you will have to pull and stretch) and seal the seam by pinching and folding.

Place the calzone on a baking sheet and cover while you make the rest.

Bake at 425F for about 15-20 minutes until golden brown.  Brush hot calzones with garlic butter for extra deliciousness.  Serve with extra marinara for dipping.

Enjoy.

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Homemade Bloody Mary Mix

A simple bloody mary mix made from tomato paste.

Bloody Marys make a great drink for 6 AM kickoff on gameday Saturdays.  However, the bottled mixes can be slightly expensive and you still have to tweak it to suit your tastes.  I decided to make my own.  I don't keep plain tomato juice in the house, but I always have tomato paste, so why not dilute it?  I absolutely love tomato paste.  It is so versatile, you can make tomato sauce with it, add it to soups and stews, and now I have found out you can make tomato juice with it.  I love that I can now, easily, make my own bloody mary mix using my favorite spices and hot sauce.

#Tomatopaste rocks | #Homemade #BloodyMary Mix  [Tweet this]

Homemade Bloody Mary Mix

Ingredients:

1 6oz can tomato paste
3 1/2-4 cups water
4 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup chopped green onions or 1-2 Tbsp onion powder
1/4 cup hot sauce (I used Big Daddy's Ass Burn Sauce, use your favorite)
1 tsp celery salt
few shakes celery seed
1/2 cup cilantro (optional)

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend on high until smooth.  Use less water if you like a thicker bloody mary, use as much hot sauce as you like or leave it out altogether.  I used green onions and cilantro just because I had some that needed to be used.

Pour the blended mixture into a large saucepan and heat to a boil (if you are worried about chunks pour mixture through a wire mesh strainer to catch any larger chunks).  It doesn't need to boil long, just let it reach a boil then remove from heat.  This just helps take off the raw flavor from the garlic, onions, and cilantro.  If you use only dried spices you could probably skip this step.

Refrigerate at least over night to allow the flavors to meld.  Pour over vodka and garnish how ever you like.  You can rim the glass with celery salt, add a stick of celery, pickles or olives. I used a stick of bacon.

Drink, watch football, and enjoy.

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