Grilled Vegetable Pesto Calzones

I don't really have any excuse for being away for so long except that I haven't really been making anything new! 

I did however try a little something different for Ash Wednesday.  It was inspired by this cooking show I've been watching on Netflix called "Oliver's Twist".  I think it's an old Jamie Oliver series.  I don't think it aired over here, because all of the measurments and instructions are in metric.

In one of the last episodes he makes some calzones.  He makes sweet ones, these aren't them.  Then he makes some rolls (shaped like cinnamon rolls) but with roasted vegetables, tomato sauce, and cheese in them.  They were shaped like cinnamon rolls, but they were savory.  Well, I got both of these ideas mixed in my head somehow and went slightly more traditional with the calzone and made a savory version. 

It's not much of a recipe, but it was fun and the results were tasty for Jon's one meal of the day on Ash Wednesday.  I'd be fasting, but that probably wouldn't be so great for the baby. 

Here's what I did.

Veggie Pesto Calzones

Ingredients
2lb pizza dough (recipe here)

1 eggplant sliced lengthwise

2 zuchini sliced into thick sticks

1/2 onion cut into large chunks

1/4 red pepper sliced

1/4 yellow pepper sliced

1/4 orange pepper sliced

1/4 green pepper sliced

(If I had portabello mushrooms I would have used a couple of those.  If I had remembered I would have also added chopped spinach)


1/4c pesto sauce (recipe here)
salt and pepper to taste
cheese to taste (I use the same Italian blend that I use for pizza)


Directions

1.  Begin by grilling or roasting all of your vegetables.  I grilled mine on the George Foreman because I thought it would be faster for some reason, but in retrospect it seems like everything would have gone faster if I had just roasted all the veggies on one large baking sheet for like 20 minutes in the oven.

2.  Chop up the larger chunks of veggies and toss with pesto sauce.

3.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

4.  Divide your pizza dough into 8 equal pieces and roll each into a 8 inch circle.



I don't know why I deviated with this one, but I put the cheese down first.  Eh, whatever floats your boat!



5.  Fill half of your dough circle with the veggie-pesto filling and sprinkle with as much cheese as you want.

6.  Fold the other half of the circle over and pinch the edges together.  Fold the edges over themselves almost like you're twisting the dough over halfway.  Tuck in the last edge.  Repeat with all your pieces of dough.

7.  Cut one or two slits in the tops of each calzone and bake for 15-20 minutes on a parchment lined cookie sheet until they're golden brown.



This is what the inside looked like after it was baked!



8.  Eat them while they're hot or cool on wire racks (don't leave them on the baking sheet, or else they'll get soggy) and pack them for lunch!  

They're just a little something different from veggie pizza and they're slightly more portable.  The kids had fun with them too!

Happy Lent!

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Dear God,

  as we begin our Lenten journey help us to constantly keep our focus on you.  Help us to remember your sufferings more than our own and to join our small sacrifices with your ultimate sacrifices.  Show us how to be your friends along your sorrowful journey to the cross.  Amen. 

Pesto Meatballs

This recipe came about because I wanted meatballs, and I wanted them with pasta, but I didn't want them with tomato sauce.   (I can't remember if I was pregnant when I concoted this recipe, but that sounds like a pregnant train of thought.  The fact that I can't remember also lends a compelling argument for the timing of this recipe creation.  Ha ha!)  I figured meatballs with alfredo sauce would be too weird, so by process of elimination, pesto was left!  Honestly, I was pretty skeptical that this would turn out okay because I don't think I had ever heard of a peso meatball before.  At that point I hadn't looked for a recipe on the internet.  In fact, I didn't actually look for pesto meatballs until the ones I made had already been eaten.  I did find some recipes for them, so I'm not that orginal (darn!).

So if you google pesto meatball recipe I'm sure you'll be able to find other recipes for this.  They might be better, I don't honestly know.  I do know that we like these, and I make them every other time I buy a huge container of basil. 

Pesto Meatballs

Ingredients

1lb ground beef

1 egg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup onions minced
1/3 cup pesto sauce RECIPE HERE
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp black pepper
1tsp salt

Method
1.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.  I think it's best when you mix with your hands, but a wooden spoon should work as well.



All ready to go into the oven!



 2.  Form the meat mixture into balls.  The ones I made were probably 2 inches in diameter, maybe a bit larger. 

3.  Bake the meatballs on a rimmed baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes until there is no more pink inside. 

Serve with pasta and more pesto sauce! 

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Dear Heavenly Father,
  please bless the father of my friend Cory.  Bring him healing and bring comfort to his family.  Amen.

Salmon with Pesto Sauce

I think this blog is good for Friday meals.  I'm getting more creative with the fish!  We had Salmon smothered in Pesto Sauce with Pesto Pasta on Friday night.  I surprised myself, I didn't think it was going to be too fantastic, but the Pesto sauce turned out very well and it paired really well with the salmon.

Usually Pesto sauce is made with pine nuts, but the price of pine nuts prohibits me from using them!  So I went with walnuts and I think they worked really well as a substitute.  I made the sauce in our magic bullet, but I imagine that you could make a larger batch in a food processor.  You might also be able to use an immersion blender for this, but you'd probably have to start with the olive oil, garlic, and nuts, then add the rest of the ingredients slowly. 

Pesto is a great sauce because all of the ingredients are raw (which means more nutrition!) and it's not incredibly rich like white sauces.   The raw garlic cloves are immune boosters, walnuts have lots of omega 3's, extra virgin olive oil has good plant fats, and basil aids in digestion and is a mood booster!  For me personally pasta is a mood booster (ha ha ha!) just because I like it. 


Salmon with Pesto Sauce
from my own brain (since I know the ingredients that go in pesto I never really looked at a recipe for it)

Ingredients
1/2 salmon filet (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2tbsp butter
1tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper

(pesto sauce)
4 large cloves of garlic
2 handfuls of fresh basil roughly chopped
1/3c extra virgin olive oil
1/4c parmesano reggiano
1/4c walnuts (I've also used pecans and almonds with success too.  Traditionally pine nuts are used.)


Method
1.  Place all the ingredients for the pesto sauce in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Add more extra virgin olive oil if it gets too thick. 

2.  Dot the salmon filet with butter, then sprinkle with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

3.  Bake the salmon in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

4.  After 30 minutes take the samon out and pour on some of the pesto sauce so that most of the filet is covered.  Return it to the oven for 2 minutes.

5.  Serve the salmon with pasta tossed with pesto sauce.

Yum! 

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Dear God,
  thank you for a relaxing evening with friends on Friday.  Help us all to treasure the people that you put into our lives and always treat them with love and respect.  Amen.