Obviously, calzone is really just glorified pizza. For some reason folding the dough over and crimping it into a little package makes this feel more special than regular old pizza.
I like to make this when L. has friends over since you can tailor it to less food-adventurous children by simplifying the filling ingredients, Plain pepperoni and cheese always goes over well. L. requested the combination above and who am I to say no - though next time, rather than mixing the anchovies in with the filling, I intend to lay them along the top of the crust - pretty and less salty I think.
Recipe
2/3 recipe of my Go-to dough (you can use the rest as a base for a hearty vegetarian quiche)
3 cups chopped blanched vegetables (I used equal parts broccoli rabe and halved artichoke hearts and then threw in a handful of blanched baby spincah leaves at the last minute)
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used a combination of shredded Mozzarella and cubed fresh Mozzarella) but Monterey Jack is also a good alternative
Anchovies according to taste
Preheat the oven to 475.
On a lightly oiled baking sheet, roll the dough out into a circle, to your favorite pizza crust thickness.
Combine the vegetables, anchovies (I used 10 of them because L. adores them but most people would probably prefer less) and the cheese together in a bowl, salt to taste, and place over 1/2 the dough.
Fold the unadorned side of the dough over the 1/2 with the vegetables and crimp the edges so that no juice or cheese can escape during cooking. Cut a few air vents in the top and bake for 25-40 minutes (this depends on how thick you have made the dough).
I can tell that the calzone is done when I lift it up a little and the bottom is cooked through. If you feel that the top is getting too brown but that the bottom is not crisp yet, make a tinfoil hat for the top of the calzone to protect it from further coloring.
When bottom is crisp, remove from oven and let sit 10 minutes in order to avoid taking the skin off th eroof of your mouth at your first greedy bite.
If serving this to children as a snack in L.s room while playing computer games, I serve this as is. When serving calzone as a component of a proper meal at an actual table, I give each person a ramekin of tomato sauce for dunking purposes. Either way, I provide lots of napkins.