Mighty & Meaty Endzone Calzones

By Julie Cichon from Brookfield, IL

Pizza Dough Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
1 pkg. active dry yeast
3 cups flour
3 TB olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:
Combine water, yeast and 1 and 1/2 cups of the flour in a large bowl. Mix well. Add oil, salt and remaining flour. Mix well, until dough holds its shape. Place dough on a lightly floured surface & knead about 5 minutes. Transfer dough to lightly oiled bowl. Cover with kitchen towel until almost doubled; about an hour. When dough has raised, place on lightly floured surface, divide it into 2 or more balls. Cover again with a towel, and let rest for 15 min. Now dough is ready to use.
Calzone Filling Ingredients:
2TB extra virgin olive oil
2/3 cup chopped onion, sauted
2 cups Sweet Italian sausage
1/2 cup pepperoni, thinly sliced
5 strips of maple bacon, fried, drained, and broken up into bite size pieces
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 and 1/2 cups mozzarella, shredded
1 and 1/2 cups pizza sauce
2 tsp. fennel seed
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 large egg, beaten and mixed with a little water (to use as wash for tops of calzones)
Directions: One hour before cooking, preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Lightly oil a pizza pan and sprinkle it with cornmeal. On a floured surface, press the dough to form 6 in. circles. Transfer dough to oiled pizza pans; set aside. Combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Divide into 4 portions. Using a knife, lightly score a line down the middle of the dough. Arrange filling on one side of the line. Fold the other side over filling; crimping the edges together well. Brush the tops of the calzones with the egg wash. This will give the pastry a nice, shiny, golden crust). Poke a few holes at the top of each calzone, and bake until golden brown; 20-25 min.
Enjoy!

Tailgate Throwdown!

More from Tailgate Throwdown!