As we wrap up the week with our portable food ideas, I couldn’t let it go without sharing a portable dinner! There have been so many times when we need to take our dinner with us – baseball games, road trips, the water park, etc. A portable dinner for us needs to have these components:
- It needs to taste OK cold or at room temperature.
- You have to be able to eat it without a fork and spoon.
- It doesn’t need to be kept in a cooler to prevent spoiling (no meat!)
- and my kids have to like it!
We have a few go-to, to-go meals like this (lol). Our veggie burritos here and these whole wheat calzones!
You definitely need to make these ahead of time. But once baked, keep wrapped in the fridge till you are ready to go. You can also freeze these after they are baked, but then you will need to re-bake them when you want to bring them somewhere.
To make the calzones, first make some pizza dough. Pizza dough is much quicker than traditional bread dough. We only let it rise about 30 minutes. You don’t need to let it rise longer than that, as you don’t want a super thick and fluffy dough.
Then, we took some veggies (we chose peppers and zucchini, because that is what is in our garden right now), and we pulsed them in a food processor. Using HALF of the zucchini, and half of each pepper, and 1/2 cup mushrooms, we got 1 1/2 cups of veggies.
Then we stirred 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese into the veggies.
With our dough and veggies ready to go, we scooped a small amount of marinara sauce and a scoop of veggies on each flattened out ball of dough. We folded the dough over and crimped the edges. Then, using a pastry brush and egg whites, we brushed the top of the calzone before baking.
Then we baked our calzones at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. We made mini calzones, so 10 minutes was all that was necessary!
Calzones make it easy to get those veggies in for dinner! I like chopping them up super small this way, so it’s easier for little ones to eat. Print the recipe below, and have some on hand for that next super busy day that you need to pull them out in a pinch.
Related post: Spinach Calzones!
Whole Wheat Veggie Calzones
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon yeast, active dry
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 1/2 cup flour, all-purpose
- 1 1/2 cup flour, whole wheat
Filling
- 1 cup spaghetti or marinara sauce
- 1/2 medium zucchini
- 1/2 medium bell pepper, green
- 1/2 medium bell pepper, yellow
- 1/2 cup, pieces or slices mushrooms, white
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, ground
Toppings
- 1 large egg white
Instructions
- Combine yeast, sugar and warm water and let set for 5 minutes. Mix remaining ingredients and then add yeast mixture. Let dough rise, in a warm place, for about 30-45 minutes.
- In the meantime, peel zucchini if desired, and de-seed bell peppers. Put zucchini, bell peppers and mushrooms in a food processor or blender and pulse until blended. Stir in 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese into the veggies.
- Roll out a small portion of the dough at a time, for mini calzones we use a golf ball size. Roll or press out. Fill middle with filling: thin layer marinara sauce, and a scoop of veggies. Fold calzone in half and then crimp edges with a fork. Set on baking tray.
- Whisk 1 egg white in a small bowl. With a pastry brush, brush the top of the calzone.
- Bake at 425 for 10-15 minutes until lightly browned. Test to make sure dough is done baking by tapping on it. It should sound hollow.
- Let cool slightly and serve with marinara sauce for dipping.
Nutrition
www.superhealthykids.com
