Papa DuP's Calzone!

Anyone that knows my father knows that he loves food. Which, really, should come as no surprise, he the epitome of a jolly Italian man. His family is everything and from the second you walk in the door till the second you leave home, he is trying to shove food in your face. God bless him. One of my favorite Papa DuP recipes is his calzone. They were usually a Holiday special, only making appearances at the DuPont Christmas party. I always loved helping my Dad make them and carefully observed his every move, from rolling out the dough to glazing the finished product with some egg wash. So I have been making them for several years now for my friends and various holiday parties I have been to and they are always a huge huge hit. A few Sundays ago I made a few calzones to take to Trav's so we could munch on them while we watched football (the Eagles to my disliking, but if the Patriots aren't an option, I'll settle for the Eagles).

Ingredients:

Dough:
*Follow recipe from previous post, minus the brown sugar. It is enough to make 2 calzones.

Filling:
1/2 lb sandwich sliced pepperoni
1/2 lb sandwich sliced genoa salami
1/2 lb hot capicola
1/2 lb provolone
1/4 lb thinly sliced prosciutto (imported is best, it's pricey, but makes a difference)
1 can Pepper salad (sweet or hot or both)



Once the dough is rolled out into two oval shapes, begin to layer the meat and cheese. I like this order: pepperoni, salami, capicola, prosciutto, provolone. Then repeat again beginning with the pepperoni on top of the provolone. You should have enough for 2 layers of each meat in each calzone. Then top the last layer of provolone with the pepper salad or whatever peppers you have chosen. The peppers are really what makes the calzone. They provide a nice acidic crunch inside the dense meaty filling. Once the calzone is filled, fold the dough over the filling and knot it in the middle. Brush with a bit of egg wash for a nice glossy finish and pop in a 425 degree oven for about 20 minutes, until golden brown. You must let them cool a little bit before cutting them, otherwise it will be very messy. I think the best part is that the bottom layer of dough gets very crusty and greasy from the meat ( I know, not healthy, but so good). Also, if you can snag an end piece, I highly recommend it.




I have done other fillings for the calzones as well. I did a buffalo chicken as well as as spicy sausage with mushroom and cheese filling. Both were good, but the classic italian meat is the big winner. It just can't be beat, all thanks to my Dad!