Spinach & Red-Pepper Calzones
Submitted by happyzhangbo
Crispy golden calzones stuffed with wilted spinach, roasted red peppers, oil-cured olives, and gooey smoked mozzarella. Vegetarian, uses store-bought dough, and bakes in just 15 minutes.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
15 minCOOK
25 minREADY
45 minStore-bought pizza dough does the heavy lifting here, so you can focus on the filling: baby spinach wilted with garlic and caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, chopped oil-cured olives, and chunks of smoked mozzarella that go all stretchy and melty inside.
Baked at high heat, the crust puffs up golden and crisp with a rope-edge seal that looks like you trained at a pizzeria.
Four individual calzones means everyone gets their own pocket of goodness, no slicing required.
Kitchen Tips
- Keep the dough pieces you’re not working with covered. Exposed dough dries out fast and tears when you try to fold it.
- Don’t overfill. It’s tempting, but a stuffed calzone won’t seal properly and the filling leaks out all over the baking sheet.
- Cut those steam vents. Without them, pressure builds up inside and you get blowouts instead of golden pockets.
- Let them cool 5 minutes before biting in. The smoked mozzarella inside is lava-hot straight from the oven.
Variations
- Swap smoked mozzarella for fresh burrata and add it after baking, split the calzone open and let it melt in.
- Add crumbled Italian sausage for a non-vegetarian version with serious heft.
- Use sun-dried tomatoes instead of roasted red peppers for a more concentrated, chewy bite.
Ingredients
bottled roasted, rinsed, patted dry, and cut into 1-inch pieces, about 4 each
Directions
Preheat oven to 500°F with rack in lowest position.
Sprinkle cornmeal on a large baking sheet.
Cook onion with ¼ teaspoon salt in 2 tablespoons oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add spinach and cook, stirring frequently, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in red peppers, olives, and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 14-inch round, then cut into quarters. Roll out 1 quarter into an 8-inch square (keep remaining pieces covered) and arrange with a corner nearest you.
Put one fourth of filling on lower half, leaving a 1-inch border, and top with 4 pieces of cheese.
Fold dough over to enclose filling.
Seal edges.
Beginning in 1 corner, stretch sealed edge outward, pinching and rolling dough up over edge to resemble a rope, working your way around.
Transfer to baking sheet.
Make 3 more calzones in same manner.
Cut 3 steam vents in top of each and brush with remaining tablespoon oil.
Bake until golden-brown, 13 to 15 minutes.
Cool 5 minutes before serving.
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