Menu Plan Monday: Calzones!

We had several good recipes last week I thought I’d highlight, the first of which is for Loosemeat Sandwiches.  We first got the recipe from watching a Rachael Ray show and then looking it up.  Since we lived in the Midwest (Iowa) at the time, we were anxious to try a loosemeat sandwich {aka a “Maidrite”}.

Here is how we make them:

Loosemeat Sandwiches

• 2 pounds ground/minced beef or turkey
• 3 onions, chopped
• 2 t paprika
• 1t Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 c chicken broth
• rolls/baps for sandwiches
• sliced pickles
• mustard

Brown the meat and 2 of the chopped onions.  As it is finishing cooking, add paprika and worst sauce.  Then, once it is fully cooked, add broth and simmer on low for 15 minutes.

To serve, open roll/bap.  Layer mustard, raw onions, then pickles, then loose meat.  Some like cheese, too- that’s up to you.  We also like to serve oven-baked french fries and/or corn on the cob.

Loosemeat Ingredients

The spicy chicken soup was awesome as always, though I completely omitted the chipotle pepper and added pinto beans.  I thought a little more protein and a little less spice would suit the kids better.  I wish I had had avocado on hand, but alas, I did not.  Once again, Luke did not touch it, but Rebekah loved it!

This week’s menu

• Monday: Homemade Calzones, spaghetti and sauce, salad
• Tuesday: Cheddar Chicken Chowder, crusty bread
• Wednesday: Left-Overs
• Thursday:  Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans
• Friday: Greek Chicken, Greek salad, roasted potatoes
• Saturday: Left-overs or Chicken Nuggets and Oven-Baked fries
• Sunday: Host Sunday dinner with friends: Taco Soup, refried beans, chips & salsa, and guacamole

Homemade Calzones

This may seem hard, but it’s really easy…it just takes a little time.  ;)

Dough

• 3 c flour (extra on hand for flouring surfaces)
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 pkg active dry yeast
• 1 c warm water
• 2 T vegetable oil

Filling

• 1 pound Italian sausage {Cumberland sausage works in the UK}
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 package pepperoni {In the US, I use turkey pepperoni}
• 1 c sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 c chopped green pepper
• 1 jar of pizza sauce
• 1-2 c mozzarella cheese

For the dough…

Hopefully you can see that the dough is smooth and elastic

In a large bowl combine half the flour, the yeast, and 1/4 t salt.  Add warm water and oil.  Beat with an electric mixture on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly.  Beat on high for 3 minutes.  Using a spoon, stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can.  Turn out onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead in enough remaining flour to make a moderately stiff, but smooth and elastic dough (usually 5 minutes of kneading- you’ll know it’s ready when it no longer sticks to your fingers and it changes texture from being coarse to very smooth and elastic.).  Divide dough in half and into 2 balls.  Cover dough and let rise for 10 minutes.  Then, roll it out for the calzones.

*Tip: You can make the dough ahead and refrigerate for up to 24 hours, just omit the rising for 10 minutes.

For the filling…

Regardless of the kind of sausage you use, take it out of its casing and cook the sausages, breaking it into smaller bits with your wooden spoon as you cook it.  Saute the onions and peppers at the same time with the sausage.  About half-way through, add the mushrooms and any other veggies.  When it’s all finished, add the sauce and simmer it for 10-15 minutes.

The shape of a calzone (I made 2 mini-pizzas for the kids).

You’ve divided the dough into 2 balls.  Roll out the both balls into circle shapes.  *Transfer the dough to a foil-lined baking sheet (I usually grease the foil, too) with part of the circle hanging off the edge (you will be folding it back over).  Spread half the sauce mixture on half the circle (the half that’s on the baking sheet), *being careful not to overfill.  Then sprinkle half the cheese on top of the sauce.  Fold the hanging edge of dough back over the rest and seal.  Repeat with the other one on a separate baking sheet.  Prick both tops with a fork for ventilation, then brush with a bit of milk so it will brown nicely.  Bake at 350 F/180 C for 30 minutes, checking every so often to make sure it’s not browning too much.

*Tip for transferring dough: Instead of pulling the dough off the counter and hoping it transfers well, flour your rolling pin and starting at the edge of the rolled out dough, roll it onto the rolling pin, adding flour so that it doesn’t stick to itself as it rolls onto itself.  Then transfer the rolling pin to the baking sheet and unroll it where you need it.  This is a particularly helpful technique for crusts, too.

*Tip for filling: If you find you have too much sauce, be sure to strain out the vegetables and have them in the filling.  You can then use any left-over sauce for dipping.  There’s a lot of crust on calzones, so extra sauce is a definite bonus.

Taco Soup

That nice taco flavor without al the chopping and mess.

• 1 pound ground/minced beef or turkey
• 1 can green chiles {not in the UK }
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cans chopped/diced tomatoes
• 1 can Rotel {US} or tomatoes with peppers {UK}
• 1 can pinto beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can corn or hominy corn
• 1 pkg Ranch dressing mix {not in UK}
• cheese and sour cream for topping

Cook the meat and onions.  Put in the crockpot.  Don’t drain any cans- add them all to the crockpot.  Add water to fill it to whatever level you desire.  Cook on high half the day or on low all day.  Great with chips & salsa, etc.  Serve with cheese on top and sour cream if you like.

For more menu ideas, be sure to check out Org Junkie.

Related posts:

1. Menu Plan Monday: We HEART Mexican Food
2. Menu Plan Monday
3. Menu Plan Monday: Summer Recipes
4. Menu Plan Monday: PF Chang’s Copy Cat Recipe!
5. Menu Plan Monday: Stir-Fry Madness