Seth was back to teaching yesterday :) I swear, having him home for the summer really spoils me. The house feels really empty, and I'm bracing myself for another year of nights home alone while Seth is off having parent-teachers conferences and late night practices or matches. At least I'll get more done around the house! :)
Anyway, this year, first day of school meant two things for me in the kitchen: chocolate meringue pie and calzone. I have made a tradition out of making the pie for Seth on the first day of school, and Seth requested calzone for dinner this year. Both look and taste fantastic when they're done, and they sound a whole lot more complicated than they actually are!
Chocolate Meringue Pie
Here's what you need:
1 C sugar
1/4 C cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
3 C milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
2 T butter
2 tsp vanilla
3-4 oz chocolate (This really depends on how much you like chocolate. Seth likes his a little on the less chocolatey side)
4 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
2 T sugar per egg white
1 9-inch pie crust (I didn't give you a recipe for this, because it all depends on what kind of crust you like. We use a pat-in-the-pan type, but you can pretty much use anything)
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. Stir in milk, blending until smooth. Cook over medium heat until mixture boils, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat.
Blend a small amount of hot mixture into beaten egg yolks. Return to pan, mixing well. Cook just until mixture starts to bubble, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in butter, chocolate and vanilla.
Cool mixture slightly, then pour into cooked pie shell.
Beat egg whites with cream of tartar until frothy. Gradually beat in sugar. Beat until egg white form stiff peaks.
Spread meringue over the chocolate filling. Make sure you spread the meringue all the way to the edges of the crust so that it completely covers the filling.
Cook pie at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes until the meringue browns slightly.
Ham and Cheese Calzone
What you need:
2 frozen loaves of bread dough
1 lb pepper ham
1 bag shredded mozzarella
1 pkg sliced provolone
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp butter
On the morning before you make this calzone, take the frozen bread dough out of the freezer and place in bread pans. Cover loosely with wax paper. During the day, the dough will defrost and puff at the same time. When ours was done, it was quite a few inches above the pan.
Melt the butter in a small frying pan. When butter has completely melted, throw in the chopped onion. Toss it around with a spatula, and be careful not to burn any pieces. At this point, you are only caramelizing the onion to make it softer and give it a more rich flavor. You will know the onion is done when it becomes slightly transparent and smells really fragrant.
Take one puffed dough and pull it to make a round or rectangle shape, depending on the pan you have available. We have a cookie sheet to make it on, so we make it rectangular. However, Seth's mom has a large pizza pan, so she makes her round. Pulling the dough may take a while and may get frustrating as the dough may rip in some places, but persevere!
Once the dough is pulled into shape, spread the onions in an even layer on top. Put down a layer of mozzarella, a layer of ham and a layer of provolone. Pull the second ball of dough to put on top. Pinch the sides tight so no filling can get out.
At this point, make one hole in the top of the calzone, about the size of a quarter. This hole lets air out while the calzone is cooking, but any more holes and the inside will dry out.
Cook the calzone at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until dough is done.
Enjoy!
