How to Make a Spinach and Cheese Calzone

Reader Contribution by Sue Van Slooten
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In our ever-widening experience concerning bread-like foods, I finally encountered a calzone I could actually make. Aha! I have conquered the calzone! This particular stuffed bread was usually something one finds in a pizzeria, stuffed with cheese, meat or spinach, or all three. My experience with them was that they were often overstuffed, sloppy, messy things to eat. Something that required a knife and fork almost (but refusing to look like a sissy, I persevered). In particular, I didn’t like the way the molten cheese could end up all over you. 

Enter Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. For those of you who haven’t read or bought this book, I highly recommend it. The authors provided a great jumping-off point for calzones, providing a recipe for the crust (reprinted for your convenience below). The first time I made this, it was experimental mode, and used only cheese. There was a definite concern on my part about a drippy calzone that would leak out the filling as it baked, too. I needn’t have worried. On my spinach/cheese calzone in the photo, you can see a little cheese and spinach oozed through the slashes, but nothing to worry about. It was also sprinkled with some sesame seeds and herbs. For more of that authentic wood-fired flavor, I baked the calzones on my Big Green Egg, my outdoor baking appliance. Sometimes I even barbecue on it, but it’s mostly my outdoor oven.

I suggest that you start this recipe the day before, but if you’re really motivated, start in the morning and go for it. Without further adieu, here’s the recipe from Five Minutes:

Spinach and Cheese Calzone

Olive Oil Dough Ingredients:

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