Sarasota's Mini Beef Calzones

Leftover brisket, pot roast, pork roast, chicken, shrimp, even ground beef. Many times I buy a big pack of ground beef and cook some, but certainly don't use it all. So I freeze a small bag ... and this is a great way to use leftovers. Perfect for a night with a bowl of soup or a salad nights. Just adds a bit more, rather than a slice of bread, roll or a grilled cheese. I use store bought pizza crust, but by all means make your own if you want. You can even buy the dough at most pizza restaurants. But this is a supposed to be a quick easy dinner. Add some chopped broccoli, peppers, onions, cheese or any combination, and make small rounds of the dough, stuff, fold them over and bake. Just serve with a nice quality marinara sauce for a dipping and you have a perfect light addition to a soup or salad dinner.

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 4-8
• Yields: 8-9 Calzones

Ingredients

• 2 (14 ounce) cans  pizza dough (I like Pillsbury but any frozen or refrigerated pizza dough will work)
• 4  ounces  meat (whether it be pork, ground, brisket, chicken, etc.)
• 6  ounces  shredded cheese (I like to mix parmesan and mozzarella, but gruyere, fontina, swiss, cheddar, monterey jack will all )
• 1 1⁄2 cups  diced  vegetables (I like onions, mushrooms and peppers best, and they should be thin sliced or diced)
• 2  cups  marinara sauce (one jar, for dipping)
• 1  teaspoon olive oil (to saute vegetable)

Directions

1. Meat -- If you have left over meat, don't worry. If not, make sure to saute it ahead of time. Just use a little olive oil in a pan to saute on medium heat until done and then set to the side to drain and cool.
2. Vegetables -- if you cooked your meat in that pan you may have a little oil left to saute your vegetables, if not -- add a little olive oil to cook your vegetables. Add them and saute 4-5 minutes until soft. Remember they won't cook much in the oven and you want most of the water cooked out of them. They also should be set to the side, drained and cooled. You don't want extra water in the calzone to make it soggy.
3. Crust -- Just roll out your pizza dough. Pillsbury comes in a rectangle so roll out as flat as you can make it. Add a little flour to your counter top or cutting board so the dough doesn't stick. I like ro roll out with a rolling pin to get in even and spread out. It should be about 13x9, each can or 14 oz of dough. Then with a 6" bowl right from your kitchen cabinet -- press down on the crust to make as many calzones as possible. This recipe will make right about 8 for both rolls. Any left over crust, just add all together and press down again to maybe get one more calzone.
4. Stuffing -- Add some of the cooled meat, then the vegetables and cheese. Now put a little water on your finger and moisten 1/2 the edge of each circle. Then fold the circle over to make a half circle. The water will just make it stick together good. Press together well to seal and then use a fork to press the edges down even more and make a nice decorative edge.
5. Bake -- Brush a little olive oil if you want on the calzones to make a crisp crust (optional). Transfer the calzones to a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or foil and bake at 450 for about 15 minutes until golden brown. One batch I made took 20 the other 15 so, just keep an eye of them. Serve with a good Marinara.
6. And remember, any mix of fillings, broccoli, ham, cheese; bacon, cheddar and onion; or chicken, spinach and mozzarella. Just think what is left in your fridge. Six dollars for pizza dough and marinara and you can make a great use of leftovers and with some soup in your freezer, you have a whole new dinner.