Dinner tonight... Calzones Stuffed with Pepperoni and Mushrooms

This weekend we went away to the country with friends and I was responsible for making dinner Friday night. Since I wasn't sure exactly how many people would arrive in time for the meal, I overbought on pizza ingredients from Trader Joe's. That meant that tonight, when it was time to make dinner for me and Mr. Fritz, I had leftover dough, pepperoni, mushrooms, cheese and sauce to play with. Instead of making yet another pizza, I decided to try making individual calzones -- basically big pockets of dough filled with pizza fixings.


The process was simple. I divided the dough in half and stretched each piece into a big oval. Then I layered the following over half of each oval, leaving about a half-inch bare around the edge: sauce, cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms (on mine only, since I know Mr. Fritz avoids them when possible), more cheese and a couple more dollops of sauce. Then I folded the non-toppings-laden half of each oval over the fillings, pinched the edges all the way around to seal the toppings inside, pricked our initials in the top of each one so that air could escape as they baked (and so that I could remember which was which when I went to serve them), and put them into the oven at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Pretty soon they were lightly browned and steaming hot. A complete meal which took all of 5 minutes to prepare. Simple, hearty, and perfect for a cold evening at the end of a busy, fun weekend!

PS: If you've never tried Trader Joe's fresh pizza dough, I must insist that you seek it out the next time you are thinking of making homemade pizza. It has a sweetness to it that makes it truly spectacular.