calzone, pizza, breadstick dough!!

Let me start out by saying that this recipe is so good and versatile that it has made it to my cupboard door!! And in my house that only happens when it is a great recipe!!

I went looking for the perfect dough to make calzones with. Calzones and us we have a history. Colin purposed on New Years Eve, and earlier in the evening he had made calzones for us to eat. So now we make them every new years eve, but I have never been satisfied with the dough. It has never been just right for me. And then when Tyler was born my incredible friend Mandy (who is also from Washington, I love that I had to come to Rexburg to meet her!! She is a- maz-ing, when we get back into a house she will be my first call to be my decorator! Oh yeah and you should check out her blog, her and her 2 sisters started a blog with lots of cute ideas. Seriously she is my hero!) brought over calzones for everyone and we all ate them up so fast. And guess what the dough (of course) was perfect. And instead of asking her for her recipe, because I feel like all I do is copy her, I went looking for one. And I think I found it. I actually already had it. I had used it to make some yummy garlic bread sticks!! I found it here. I Love this dough recipe. I have used it to make bread sticks, cheesy garlic rolls, pizza, and calzones. It is so easy and so perfect!! My kids had a ball helping roll out there own dough and putting on their own toppings. If you would like more of a step by step tutorial you can find it here.


Dough recipe

1 1/2 c. warm (105-115 degrees) water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
3-4 1/2 c. flour


In a large bowl (the bowl of your mixer, if you have one), combine water, sugar, and yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes or until yeast is bubbly.

Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 c. flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour (usually between 3-4 cups, depending on your elevation and your humidity) until dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it barely sticks to your finger.

Spray a glass or metal bowl with cooking spray and place dough in the bowl.
Cover and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

From there you can either roll into pizza dough, calzones, or breadsticks.

yes I know they are still in there pjs in the middle of the day, don't judge people

Calzones -

take a small amount of dough and roll out , on one side add Italian dressing then top with your favorite topping. pull other side over and pinch side to seal closed. I cooked mine in a 375 oven for about 10 minutes. Have some marinara sauce for dipping.

Pizza-
one recipe will make about 2 medium pizzas. Roll out dough and the prick with a fork to get holes in it so you dont have bubbly dough. After this, if you like crispy crust brush with olive oil and itialian seasoning or garlic salt/ powder and bake for 5-10 minutes. Take out then add you sauce and toppings then stick back in the oven. bake at 425 for 10 -12 minutes



breadsticks-
Remove from bowl and place on a lightly-floured surface. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Roll into a rectangle and cut into 12 strips with a pizza cutter.Roll out each piece of dough into a snake and then drape over your forefinger and twist the dough. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining 11 pieces of dough. Try to space them evenly, but it's okay if they're close; pulling apart hot bread is one of life's greatest pleasures! Cover pan and allow dough to rise for another 30 minutes.
When there's about 15 minutes to go, preheat your oven to 425. When done rising, bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Rub some butter on top of the breadsticks (just put a ziploc bag on your hand, grab some softened butter, and have at it) and sprinkle with garlic bread seasoning or the powdery Parmesan cheese in a can and garlic salt.



I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have. Maybe it will make your cupboard door as well!!

Moons Pizza Dough

My mom has been making this pizza dough for as long as I can remember!! This is one of my great memories growing up. My mom always made a bunch of dough then we would each get to pick a pan (usually a round cake pan, or an 8x8 ) and make our own pizzas. My mom would have all the topping in bowls lined up and we would just make our own creations and do weird designs so we could tell who's was who's in the oven!!!! We make it in our kitchen aid turns out great!!!


Moon’s pizza dough

2 tablespoons active dry yeast
2 cups warm water
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons oil (vegetable or olive oil)
4 ½ -6 ½ cups flour

Mix water, sugar and yeast together, let stand for 5 minutes. Add salt, oil, and 4 cups of flour. Knead together for 2 minutes. Add remaining flour ½ cup at a time if needed. We like the dough really soft. After you have the desired amount of flour in, Knead for 5 more minutes. Cover and let rise until doubled. Punch down. Grease pizza pans (this recipe make 2 large cookie sheet pizzas, or a bunch of small individual pizzas) spread dough out onto pan. Poke holes in the dough before you put any toppings on to prevent air bubbles. Top with desired sauce and toppings. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 -20 minutes!!

enjoy!!!

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

I love this pizza dough...I think it's a lot better if you use freshly ground wheat (I like the white wheat better than red) instead of the stuff you buy at the store. I think this recipe usually makes 2 pizzas...

1 t. brown sugar
1.5 cups warm water
1 T. yeast
1 T. olive oil
1 t. salt
3-3.25 c. whole wheat flour
1 t. garlic powder
1.5 t. Italian seasoning
1.5 t. dried basil

-Dissolve sugar in water. Add yeast. Let proof till frothy.
-Add oil and salt, then flour
-Knead 8-10 minutes (preferably in a Kitchen Aid or Bosch mixer)
-Turn dough out into an oiled bowl and let raise 1 hour
-Punch dough down, divide in 2, let rise 45 minutes (this rise is optional...I think it makes it taste better, though)
-Roll out (I like to roll it out either on corn meal, or coat my oiled pan with corn meal to make the dough a little chewier), place on oiled pan (at this point you can let it rise again for 10-30 minutes if you like a softer crust, or don't bother if you like a thinner crust)
-Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, remove from oven, top with desired toppings, and bake another 10-15 minutes till toppings are cooked to desired done-ness.