Thursday, July 10, 2014

Spinach Ricotta Calzones @LucyBurdette


Lucy with her sister Sue
LUCY BURDETTE: Did any of the rest of you go through a hippie-ish phase in the 70's or 80's where you cooked a lot of recipes from the Moosewood cookbooks? I sure did, and it seems like some of them were seared into my brain--in a good way mostly. 

So last week when I was wondering what to do with the second half of my pizza dough, which was lounging in the fridge, I remembered: calzones! This isn't the exact recipe from the Moosewood Cookbook, but it takes off from their version.

Ingredients

1 recipe pizza dough

1 package frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
8 oz ricotta cheese
4 oz mozzarella, shredded 
1/2 onion, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh dill, chopped
salt and pepper to taste


Saute the onion in a little olive oil until soft. 

Place cheeses in a big bowl, add the onion, the dill, and the spinach--which should be squeezed dry. (Don't be afraid to use your hands.) Mix well.


Divide the dough into four sections and roll them out into circles. Divide the filling four ways and mound it in the dough circles. 

 

Wet the edges of the dough and fold it over. Press together with a fork and make a few holes in the center of the half-moons to let out the steam.

Bake in a 450 oven for about 15 minutes. You can serve these alone or with a little marinara sauce, and a green salad.































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12 comments:

  1. I'm looking up at my cookbook shelf. There are several Moosewood books up there!

    Calzones are so yummy and so adaptable. Skip the dill and use oreganl. Add meat. Or grated carrots. Or whatever you want.
    I guess you could make is a sweet calzone, too. Ricotta with peaches, a drizzle of honey, and a smidgen (very fancy cooking terms) of cinnamon.
    You've imspired me!

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  2. Love making calzones.. although we also play with the fillings.. Most of the time the onion is joined by red and green pepper sliced into strips... and lots of mushrooms.

    I'm still working on a useable pizza dough recipe that I can make at home. We have a lovely pizza stone to bake them on.

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    1. Nora, I almost always use the recipe from Joy of Cooking--it seems to be foolproof and it makes a double batch. I may have to put a pizza stone on my Xmas wish list...

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  3. These look delish AND I think I could actually do this! (and now I have a use for that emergency bag of spinach I keep in the freezer.) Yum!

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  4. I've made pizza many times but never tried calzones! I will have to give it a whirl.

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    1. It's a fun variation--as long as you're not on the low-carb diet...

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  5. Beautiful and I am sure delicious. Looking forward to trying it. Always had good results with Moosewood. Hugs. MJ

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  6. I remember Moosewood as very popular but I never had a copy. The calzones look fabulous, Lucy!

    ~Krista

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  7. How simple and easy! I've mentioned Moosewood in my Cookbook Nook books, but I've never read one. Love your picture!

    Daryl / Avery

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    1. OH MY GOSH, Krista and Daryl, you have to add a Moosewood to your collections!!

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