Chicken Pesto Calzones

I had a hankering for calzones the other day. I thing this gene can be directly correlated to my dad. I searched the web for an enticing recipe and found one for Chicken Pesto. I can't say I've made those before, so let's give it a whirl.

There was definitely some prep to make this a weeknight meal. I made the dough and let it rise the night before. I also made the pesto and cooked the chicken the previous night. I feel like the most laborious task was rolling out the dough, but I doubled the recipe so I could freeze leftovers and have something to eat (say when hubby is sheep hunting).

Cheese.

The fold, tuck, and seal.

I made the pesto with cilantro instead of parsley and it was so good!

Time to bake.

Hot and ready to eat.

I definitely recommend serving these with Marinara sauce. Afterall, doesn't dipping sauce just make everyone happy?

 Now I can say I've made Chicken Pesto Calzones...

Homemade Basil Pesto
Adapted from rx4foodies

3 cups fresh basil, packed
1 cup fresh cilantro, packed
2/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
3 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus more for tasting
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt, to taste

In a medium sized pan over medium heat, toast pine nuts until they get fragrant. Watch these carefully as these can get toasty fragrant to burnt very quickly.

In a food processor, combine the basil, parsley, pine nuts, garlic, solive oil, and lemon juice. [But not the parmesan cheese. We'll get to that in just a little bit.] Pulse until the mixture has a smooth, but thick paste-like consistency.

Poor the basil mixture into a medium-sized bowl, and fold in the parmesan cheese. Mix until the cheese has been thoroughly incorporated.  Add more lemon juice and salt to taste. But trust me, you really won’t need anymore salt after this because of the saltiness from the parmesan cheese. However, do add more lemon juice because it really livens up the pesto sauce. But then again, we like lots of lemons in almost everything we eat.

Makes 3 cups of pesto.

Chicken Pesto Calzones
Recipe from My Kitchen Addiction

Chicken Pesto Calzones

For the dough (adapted from The Pioneer Woman):

• 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
• 1 teaspoon dry active yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour
• 2 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

To finish the calzones:

• 1 cup pesto
• 3 cups cooked shredded chicken
• 4 ounces Provolone Stravecchio cheese, shredded
  (or substitute any provolone or mozzarella)
• Extra virgin olive oil (to drizzle on top)
• Italian seasoning

To prepare the dough, combine the lukewarm water, yeast, and sugar in a mixing bowl.  Whisk until the yeast and sugar are dissolved in the water.  Add the olive oil, salt, and bread flour.  Stir until the mixture is smooth.  Gradually add the whole wheat flour, stirring with a wooden spoon until the dough starts to pull from the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and continue to knead in the rest of the whole wheat flour (or just knead in the bowl, if you prefer) until the dough is smooth.  Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise for about 1 1/2 – 2 hours.

Once the dough has risen, preheat the oven to 475°F.  Lightly grease a baking sheet and set aside. Divide the dough into four portions and spread each portion of the dough into a rectangle/oval on a lightly floured surface.

In a mixing bowl, combine the shredded chicken and the pesto. Spoon 1/4 of the chicken pesto mixture onto half of each piece of dough. Top with the provolone cheese.  Fold the dough over the filling and pinch the edges to seal the calzone. - See more at: Transfer each calzone to the baking sheet, brush the top with some olive oil and sprinkle with Italian seasoning.  Bake for about 12 – 14 minutes until golden on top and cooked through.  Enjoy! 

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