Whole Wheat Calzones Food

WHOLE WHEAT CALZONES

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm water, yeast, and sugar. Stir and let sit until the yeast starts to foam and bubble, about 10 minutes.
• Using the dough hook, turn the mixer on low and slowly olive oil, honey, salt and the flour in 1 cup increments until all is added. Once dough starts to form, increase speed to medium. Mix for 5 minutes, until dough is well combined.
• Dust the counter with flour. Remove the dough and knead on counter a few times to form a ball. Place dough in a well-greased bowl, cover loosely with a towel, and let rise for 30 minutes in a warm place. At this point, dough is ready to use for calzones or to freeze to use later.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, mozzarella, eggs, parsley, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper. If using pre-cooked Italian sausage or pepperoni, stir in now. Set aside.
• Grab a pinch of dough and roll into about a 2 inch ball (or desired size of calzone.) Roll out very thin, about 1/4 of an inch thick.
• Spoon 3-4 tablespoons (approximately) filling onto half of the dough circle, leaving a little room around the edges. (Do not overfill the calzone or it will split open while baking.) Fold half of the dough over itself, then press edges to seal. Use the back of a fork to make sure it's sealed well. Then, poke a few holes with the fork in the top of each calzone.
• Brush surface of calzone with beaten egg, then bake on a parchment or foiled-lined baking sheet for 10-13 minutes, or until nice and golden brown. Serve with warm marinara sauce.

WHOLE-WHEAT BEEF, MUSHROOM AND SPINACH CALZONE

Steps:

• Set a pizza stone or baking sheet on an oven rack in the bottom-third position and preheat to 425 degrees F.
• Heat 1 teaspoon of the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and a pinch of crushed red pepper. Break the beef into large chunks with a wooden spoon. When the beef is browned all over, about 2 minutes, add the mushrooms, 2/3 of the garlic and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook for 3 minutes, then fold in the spinach to wilt, about 1 minute. This mixture should be relatively dry. Remove to a large bowl to cool completely.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil and garlic and another pinch of crushed red pepper to the skillet. Stir for a minute to lightly brown the garlic, then add the tomatoes and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Simmer until thick, about 6 minutes. Reheat this sauce when ready to serve with the calzones.
• Divide the pizza dough into 4 balls. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. On a well-floured surface, roll out each rested ball into a 6- or 7-inch circle 1/8 inch thick. On the bottom half of each circle, mound a quarter of the cooled beef mixture, top with 3 tablespoons of the mozzarella, fold over the top half of the dough to form a semicircle and pinch the edges to seal. Carefully transfer the calzones with a spatula to the prepared baking sheet. Lightly brush with the beaten egg. Cut 2 small slits on top of each to vent steam.
• Bake the calzones in the oven on the hot pizza stone or baking sheet until golden brown, about 22 minutes. Serve with the heated tomato sauce on the side.
• Stir together the warm water, honey and yeast in a measuring cup or small bowl. Let sit until a small layer of foam develops at the top, 3 to 5 minutes. (If this doesn't happen, discard and try again with new yeast.)
• Whisk the flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt together in a medium bowl. Add the foamy yeast mixture and olive oil and mix together with a stiff rubber spatula. Form the dough into a uniform ball in the center of the bowl. Be sure to scrape and use any dough stuck to the sides. The dough will be very sticky at this stage. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and keep in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Lightly dust a baking sheet with flour. Sprinkle a generous amount of flour on a clean, dry work surface. Scrape the dough onto the floured surface and knead for a couple of minutes, working in just enough flour to make the dough less sticky but still moist to the touch. Form the dough into 1, 2 or 4 balls, for large, medium and small pizzas. Place the dough ball(s) on the prepared baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a dish towel and let rest for 30 minutes. The dough can then be shaped and cooked as desired or wrapped well and frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw frozen dough at room temperature, shape and cook as desired.

BIG-BATCH HEALTHY BEEF, MUSHROOM AND SPINACH CALZONES

Steps:

• Set a pizza stone or baking sheet on an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven, and preheat to 425 degrees F.
• Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef, 3/4 teaspoon salt and half the pepper flakes, and cook, breaking the beef up into large chunks with a wooden spoon, until the beef is browned all over, about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, 2/3 of the garlic and 3/4 teaspoon salt, and cook for 3 minutes more. Fold in the spinach, and cook until wilted, about 1 minute (the mixture should be relatively dry). Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, and let cool completely.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the remaining oil, garlic and pepper flakes to the skillet, and cook, stirring, to lightly brown the garlic, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and 3/4 teaspoon salt, and simmer the sauce until thick, about 6 minutes; set aside.
• Divide the pizza dough into 12 balls. Spray 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. On a well-floured surface, roll out each ball into a 6- or 7-inch circle 1/8 inch thick. On the bottom half of each circle, mound 1/4 cup of the cooled beef mixture and top with 3 tablespoons of the mozzarella. Fold over the top half of the dough to form a semicircle, and pinch the edges to seal. Carefully transfer the calzones with a spatula to the prepared baking sheets. Lightly brush with the beaten egg. Cut 2 small slits on top of each to vent steam.
• Refrigerate half the calzones. With a spatula, transfer the rest of the calzones to the hot pizza stone or baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 22 minutes. Repeat with the remaining calzones. Reheat the tomato sauce, and serve on the side.
• To freeze: Let the baked calzones cool completely, then wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. Place them in freezer bags, and freeze for up to a month. The sauce can be frozen in 12 small freezer bags for up to a month.
• To reheat: Thaw the frozen calzones in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours. Unwrap the calzones, then microwave them on a microwave-safe plate in 1-minute increments, rotating them after each, until heated through, 2 to 4 minutes. To reheat the sauce, microwave it in a microwave-safe bowl in 30-second increments, stirring after each, until the sauce is hot.

WHOLE WHEAT CALZONES

Steps:

• For Dough:.
• In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water.
• Add the honey and let stand 5 minutes until yeast foams.
• Add the oil, salt, and all-purpose flour; beat well.
• Stir in enough of the whole wheat pastry flour to make a very stiff dough.
• Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. During this time dough will become soft.
• For Filling:.
• Heat the tomato sauce with the basil and oregan; reserve.
• Simmer the sausages in water to cover for 20 minutes.
• Drain and cool the sausages.
• Remove sausage casings and slice thinly.
• In a medium bowl combine cheeses.
• Construction:.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Lightly grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Divde risen dough in half.
• Roll one half out on a lightly floured surface to an 11-inch circle.
• Brush lightly with olive oil and spread half of the tomato sauce over half of the dough circle to within 1/2 inch of the edges.
• Top sauce with half the sausage and sprinkle with half of the cheese mixture.
• Fold plain half over filling to within 1/4 inch of the opposite edge.
• Roll bottom edge up over top edge and pinch or crimp together to seal.
• Brush with olive oil.
• Transfer to baking sheet. Pierce top with fork.
• Repeat process with remaining dough and fillings.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
• Variations: Add your favorite fillings such as onions, green peppers, mushrooms, olives, spinach, cooked ground beef, pepperoni -- the sky's the limit.