Asiago-Crusted Calzone

Yesterday morning I knocked off number 10 on my Autumn 2012 Bucket List! It was more of a hike than a walk, but I'm counting it nonetheless!

Now on to food:

Well, sort of!

Asiago-Crusted Calzone

Okay, well this isn't the healthiest thing on the planet, nor the prettiest, but it was a tasty, (almost) guilt-free deviance from what I normally eat.

What I Used:

For the Crust:

~ 1/2 Cup water, warm/hot

~ 1 Teaspoon instant dry yeast

~ Pinch of sugar (you can use any kind of sweetener; this is just to help the yeast)

~ 1/2 Cup whole wheat flour

~ 1/2 Cup white flour (I ran out of whole wheat, otherwise I wouldn't have used any white)

For the Filling:

~ 2 to 3 Large tomatoes, peeled and cut into chunks 

~ 1/4 Teaspoon oregano

~ 3/4 Teaspoon basil

~ 1/4 Teaspoon red pepper flakes (I used 1/2 teaspoon, but it was a tad too much, so I scaled it down a little.)

~ 1 Teaspoon sugar

~ 1/4 to 1/2 Cup onion, chopped

~ 2 Cloves garlic, minced

~ Pinch of salt

~ EVOO

~ Asiago cheese

What I Did:

Filling:

1. Put the tomatoes into a small to medium saucepan and mash them up a little so they begin to make a sauce. Turn burner onto low-ish heat. 
2. Add the oregano, basil, salt, and red pepper flakes.
3. Drizzle a little olive oil in a separate pan/skillet and heat over medium to medium-high heat.
4. Add the onion. Let it slightly brown, then add the garlic. The onion should be partially caramelized.
5. Add the onion to the tomatoes/sauce. Also add the sugar.
6. Let simmer, stirring occasionally and partially covered, until it thickens, and you're left with a chunky sauce.

Dough:

1. While the sauce cooks down, measure about 1/2 cup of warm/somewhat hot water into a small bowl, and mix in the pinch of sugar. Add the yeast and let sit for about 5 minutes.
2. In a separate, larger bowl, mix the two flours. Add the yeast/water mixture, and mix until a soft dough forms.
3. Lightly flour a clean surface (and your hands!) and dump the dough. Knead for a couple minutes (won't take long) until the dough becomes soft and "fluffy." 
4. Place dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with saran wrap, then a dish towel, and place in a warm, dry place to rise for about 30 minutes. (I turned on my oven for a couple minutes, then turned it off and let the dough rise there.)

Check on the sauce.

Together:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. The dough should have doubled (at least) in size. Punch it down and turn it back onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for a minute again, then cut in half.
3. Place one half aside, and use a rolling pin, if desired, to roll out the dough into a somewhat thin rectangle/oval-ish shape.

     4. Spoon the sauce onto just slightly below the middle of the dough, lengthwise. Then crumble some asiago cheese on top.

     5. Fold the top half of the dough over, and pinch the edges closed with a fork.

     6. Cut the edges, so you get a cleaner, more even edge.  

      7. Place on a greased pan, lightly oil or spray the top with cooking spray, and sprinkle with asiago cheese. Do the same for the other half.

     8. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes (I started with 15 then checked on it every 5 minutes or so.)

  

Enjoy!

* If desired, you can leave out the sauce and just dip the cheese bread in.

Question of the Day: If you haven't noticed by now, I use a lot of asiago cheese. Maybe it's the Italian in me, but I love cheese. What about you, do you eat cheese? If so, what's your favorite kind? There are so many types, sometimes it's hard for me to choose!

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