'Calzones' and an Artichoke

Matt and I decided to try and make 'calzones' the other night. We kind of just went for it which, may have been a poor choice but oh well. This one falls under the 'mishap' category.

First we made the dough with brown rice flour, an egg, and some cold water. I don't have a rolling pin but I always have an extra bottle of wine. Put parchment paper on the dough and roll away!



We threw in our favorite toppings: marinara sauce, mushrooms, onions, red pepper, zucchini, Italian sausage and some Daiya cheese.



Folding them up was tricky and they're not pretty but, it's our first try.



Sprinkled with polenta.



Bake for an hour at 350 and watch old office episodes in the mean time. This is the finished product.



Throw some sauce over it and you're done. Honestly, the dough was crappy. We should have made it in advance, with yeast, and let it rise because it tasted just how it looks, like cardboard. I ate the ingredients out of the middle and was done. Nice try!



Our side dish/dessert was an artichoke. Ooooh artichokes, I love you. I eat them as often as possible and with the giant ones now at the farmer market I now also eat large quantities. So here's how to do it.

-Cut the stem off the bottom and then cut some of the top off so steam can get in and cook it through. You'll need you're best serrated knife. It's beautiful!



I use my fantastic garage-sale-find mini Black & Decker steamer but I've also used a pan with 1.5 inches of water in the bottom, cover, and put the stove on med-high. Put the artichoke in face down and put the timer on for an hour either way. If using a pan periodically check to see that there is still water in the pan or you'll have a burnt pan and a burnt artichoke.



The artichoke is done when you can pick an outside leaf and scrape meat off half of it with your teeth. Serve with two bowels, one for waste and the sauce of your choice. When you peel off all the green leaves, and the purple/white leaves, and are left with a furry mistery, use a fork to scrape off the top layer of 'furry-ness.' Whatever is left is the soft heart and is all edible. Dip into some sauce and eat up!

Sauces:
-Melted butter and minced garlic
-Ketchup and mayo

YUM!

If you don't pick an artichoke off the plant when it's ready to eat, it turns into this awesome purple flower. I want a garden of artichokes!