Paneer Calzone (whole wheat)

Friday is my most favorite day of the week. You have the whole weekend ahead of you. Also friday nights are mostly pizza nights( which my little daughter loves)... which means Pizza Hut delivery or if we have the enthu hubby and I make it together at home. Last friday I thought I should do something different and decided to make a Calzone. Of course I had to put in a desi touch to it. I remember a while back they introduced a Calzone on the Pizza Hut menu. I saw the commercials and flyers and always wanted to try it but unfortunately they never came up with a vegetarian version.
A calzone ("stocking" or "trouser" in Italian) is a sort of folded over pizza or turnover with filling. It is originally from Naples, Italy. It is made of ingredients similar to pizza, folded over and shaped like a crescent sealed on one edge, and baked. The typical calzone is stuffed with tomato and mozzarella, and may include other ingredients usually associated with pizza toppings (sourced from Wikipedia).

I love the half moon envelope shape... they make for a cute and fun  presentation.
Calzone may be filled with a variety of vegetable combinations, cheeses and meats of choice. It is typically served with marinara sauce on the side for dipping. Here, I made them with my whole wheat pizza dough recipe (so they are healthier) and for the filling I used  the world famous indian cheese paneer sauted with some tandoori spices. The spicy tangy filling was definitely the highlight of this yummy calzone. It was a great dinner and made a yummy filling lunch the next day. They will be fun to take on picnics too and great as an after school snack for kids. We had this as an evening snack, but it was quite filling and so yummy that we ate more than what you you typically call snack portion :D. So much so that we didn't eat any dinner. It is an easy and interesting one pot meal and is simply delicious.

I know I am going to make this often.

    

Ingredients: makes 4

Atta or whole wheat flour ....................... 1 1/2 cup

All purpose flour .................................. 1/2 cup

Lukewarm milk .................................... 3/4 cup

Rapid rise yeast ................................... 1 1/4 tsp

Extra virgin olive oil ............................. 4 tsp

Salt ................................................. 3/4 tsp

Sugar ............................................... 1/2 tsp

Garlic powder ..................................... 1 tsp

Method:

For the shell-
1. Dissolve yeast, salt and sugar in the milk. Mix and set aside for 10 -12 minutes or until it gets frothy.

2. Add oil in the above mixture.

3. In a medium size bowl, take whole wheat and all purpose flour. Mix in the garlic powder. Make a well in the middle. Pour the yeast mixture and knead to form a soft dough. If the dough is too soft, add a little flour to make it manageable. Knead for 5 - 6 minutes till the dough is smooth. Apply a little oil on your palms so the dough does not stick to your hands.

4. Apply oil over the dough, cover with a wet kitchen towel and keep aside in a warm place for 1 -1.5 hrs till it doubles in size.

For the filling-
Onion ..................................... 1 sliced
Oil ......................................... 1 tbsp
Tomato ................................... 1 medium, chopped fine
Bell pepper .............................. 1 sliced (red or green)
Paneer .................................... 2 cups small cubes
Ginger garlic paste ...................... 1 tsp
Tomato Ketchup ........................ 1-2 tbsp
Tandoori masala ........................ 1 tsp
Red chilli powder ...................... 1/2 tsp or to taste
Lemon juice ............................. 1 tsp
Mozzarella cheese ...................... 1/4 cup grated
Salt ........................................ to taste

Method:
1. Heat the oil, add the onions and salt and sauté the onions till soft and light brown. Add the bell pepper, tomatoes, ginger garlic paste ,red chilli and tandoori masala and stir a couple of times. Add the ketchup and paneer. Mix and cook for 4-5 minutes. Add in lemon juice. Stir and keep aside.

2. Preheat oven to 400 deg F.

3. Take the dough, punch out the air. Line a non stick pizza pan or cookie pan with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece into a circle about 6” in diameter. Place the paneer filling on one half making sure the edges of the semi-circle are free. Top with some grated cheese.  Moisten the edges with water and carefully fold the filling free half over to form a semi circle. Seal the edges and press down using a fork. Make slits on top to allow steam to escape.

4. Bake in the oven for 18 - 20 minutes or till they turn light golden brown. Take out and allow to cool for 10 - 15 minutes. Cut in half and serve. ENJOY!

Notes:
1. Be creative,you can use variety of ingredients for the filling.Mushrooms,potatoes,green peas,cauliflower are some of the options.

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