Description

The calzone was invented in 18th Century Naples as a neatly contained, on-the-go variation of pizza. Its name speaks to its portability, translating roughly to “trousers” or “pants legs.” It is made from a piece of pizza dough that has been folded into a half moon shape, like a large empanada, around a variety of fillings.

Directions

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2. Gather the ingredients.
3. Stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar in a small bowl. Set aside until yeast has started to foam, about 5 minutes.
4. Beat together bread flour, 00 or all-purpose flour, and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook on low speed until combined, about 10 seconds.
5. Add yeast mixture and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to flour mixture and mix on medium-low speed until dough forms a single mass and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 1 minute.
6. Coat a large bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and transfer dough to the oiled bowl; turn the dough to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the dough has doubled in volume, about 24 hours.
7. Transfer the dough from the bowl to a lightly-floured countertop and divide it evenly into 4 portions (about 9 3/4 oz. each).
8. Working with one dough portion at a time, place the dough on a clean work surface and cup the sides with the palms of your hands, spinning the dough with your hands to form a taut ball. Repeat this process with the remaining 3 dough portions.
9. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the dough balls, seam side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours.
10. About 1 hour before preparing the calzones, remove the dough balls from the refrigerator to allow them to come to room temperature.
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