Sourdough Calzone….My 100th Post

I want pizza not any pizza but a gigantic stuffed pizza. On Friday, I decided to make something that I love to eat and that’s a calzone using my sourdough starter for the pizza dough. If you don’t have any sourdough starter, you can use any decent store bought pizza dough. If you are new to making a starter,  it's a flour and water mixture that contains wild yeast used to rise bread.  I’m usually making sourdough bread so having starter in the fridge is a plus for me. So, my first step to making this calzone was making the pizza dough. All I had to do is take out my extra starter and refresh it a couple of days with flour and water. After the starter was revived, I was able to make the pizza dough. (this had to be done four days before so the dough could rise and be ready on Friday.)  I have to confess the sourdough calzone was pretty good. Just writing about it makes me crave it….Mmmmm.

Ingredients: Sourdough Pizza Dough

Makes 2 Calzone

1 1/2 cup starter

1 cup warm filtered water

4 cups KA Flour

2 tsp. salt

1 tbs. Barley malt

Preheat pizza stone on middle lower rack to 425 degrees. 

Mix all ingredients together in a stand mixer bowl using the dough hook at low speed. Increase speed to medium and kneed for five minutes or until dough peels away easily from the sides of the mixing bowl. Depending how wet your starter is, you may need to add water while mixing or additional flour. You are looking for a smooth and workable dough. Kneed dough into a ball and place the dough in a well oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a clean towel. Place bowl in a non-draft dark room and wait for dough to double in size. I usually let it double overnight, 24hrs.  

After the dough has double in size,  punch it down. Place the dough on parchment paper and divide the dough in half. Kneed for 3 minutes and let each dough rest for 5 minutes. Spread each dough using your finger tips into a circular disk. Cover each dough and allow it to rest and rise for 1 hour. 

Divide all filling ingredients and place onto the bottom half of the dough. Fold over and pinch the ends together making sure the calzone is seal. Repeat same step for second calzone. Place on parchment paper and rub with olive oil or butter. Cut three slits in the top and Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until calzone is golden brown and you can see the cheese bubbling.

The Filling is whatever you desire…This calzone had Italian sausage, jalapeno peppers, roasted red, yellow, green bell peppers, black olives, roasted tomatoes, onions, basil, tomato sauce and gouda cheese, lots of it.

Make Fridays A Little More Special Than Normal!!