When I was in middle school, Friday nights always meant pizza and a video rental. yes, a video. VHS. I remember setting up the TV trays, getting out the napkins, and having some laid-back family time. I always enjoyed it. We're not a fancy family. We're snuggly. To this day, I find great comfort in dinner and a movie with the hubs. Plus, Joe and I make some mean air popped corn with Earth Balance butter and nutritional yeast. yum! Admittedly Joe makes it better than I because he's not afraid to use a lot more topping than I am, and I quite happily turn a blind eye to this.  Last night, for example, we whole-heartedly enjoyed a bowl 'a corn and Easy A (a flick I LOVED, btw.)

These days I no longer order delivery from "The Pizza Dude" (really, that was the name of the pizza place!), and more times than not we make our pizza and calzones at home.  It does take a bit of work.. well, not so much work as just planning ahead to allow time for the dough to rise.  I always feel it's worth it, and I never feel the guilt or well, grossness, that I do after eating store bought 'za.  As Jim Gaffigan says, "Did I just eat that or rub it on my face?"  Now, who wants that?

This is a dough well-suited for calzones or a thinner, denser crust for a pizza.  I like it for calzones because it's not too thick, and it doesn't over power the filling.

Calzone Dough
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water (not hot, but not quite lukewarm either.  if you want to get techy, 110-115 degrees)

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the water in a medium-large sized bowl, and let sit for 10 minutes.  You want to see a sort of foam happening on top of the water mixture so that you know your yeast has activated.

Add in some seasonings here.  You really can't go wrong.  I typically do:
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil

Also add in some oil, and mix well:
2 T. olive oil

Time for the flour!  I like to do about half and half unbleached white all purpose flour and whole wheat flour, but do what you like.  It might take some time to figure out what kind of ratio you like - if any.  To begin, mix in:
2 1/2 cups of flour

On a clean surface, sprinkle some flour, and turn your dough out onto the surface.  Knead in additional flour until the dough is no longer sticky.  Keep kneading - about 10 minutes all together, until the dough is elastic.  Don't be intimidated about kneading the dough!  Just push with the heel of your hand, fold the dough in half, turn it 1/4 turn, repeat, repeat, repeat!  Easy peasy!

Oil your bowl, and place your dough in there.  Cover with a cloth, and allow to sit and rise at least 1 hour.  After the hour (or more), punch the dough down to form a tight ball.  Let it relax a little (maybe 10 minutes), and then get ready to roll.  Cut your dough into equal sections - about 6.  Then roll out those individual sections for your individual calzones. 

Lay your filling on one half of the circle, fold, and poke some air vents!  Place on a greased baking sheet, or even better, a parchment paper lined sheet for easy clean up!

Bake at 425 degrees for about 20-25 minutes - until crust is golden and center is heated through.

*A Note About Fillings:  If you're using veggies, saute them up just briefly before stuffing the calzone.  Just with a little bit of oil, or boil the broccoli, etc. 

Enjoy!

Book to store to table to blog. The fastest turnover in amateur vegan blog history. That's because I freaking love this stew! I had originally planned on posting the recipe for a, coincidentally, quinoa vegetable soup, but we made this tonight for the first time, and I just loved it, and I wanted to share immediately!

This comes from Isa's just released book Appetite for Reduction, and I finally received my copy from the library hold line. I've only had it for a week, and we've already cooked up 4 recipes, and I have every intention of having it for my own. It's awesome. The idea is to provide healthy, low fat, vegan recipes.. oh, and they're incredibly tasty, and so far, super easy. This lady just never disappoints.

Anyways, back to the rock your tastebuds stew. Joe and I ventured out to the Akron area today in search of the bakery that supplies the treats for the restaurant Vegitteranean. Sadly, our 40 minute trek lead us to a "closed for vacation" sign. What are the chances?! Don't they realize people NEED their delightful bakery fix?! Oh, the humanity! Fortunately, just down the street, there is a Breadsmith bakery. They have amazing bread. There is one in Lakewood just a block away from Nature's Bin, and it's oh-so yummy. We picked up a nice, cracked wheat french boucle, and headed a little further down the street to Mustard Seed Market to get our goods. If you live in that direction, check them out for all your vegan groceries. They got what you need!

One of the things I love the most about this recipe is the inclusion of kale. This is such a super veg, and I admittedly don't eat it enough. Adding it to a soup is a really easy way to incorporate it into a diet. Kale is packed with Vitamins A, C and K plus dietary fiber and protein, just to name a few benefits.

Without further ado, I present Isa's Quinoa, White Bean & Kale Stew!
Also, since I have them available from the book, some nutrition facts for you: only 300 calories per serving, 14 grams of protein, 9 grams of fiber, 210% of your DV of Vitamin A, and 150% of your DV of Vitamin C. pretty awesome, huh?

Quinoa, White Bean & Kale Stew
Herb blend
1 tsp. dried marjoram
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
Freshly ground pepper

Everything else
1 tsp. olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced leeks (about 1 average sized leek)
1 tsp. salt
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large carrot, peeled, cut into medium dice
1 large parsnip, peeled, cut into medium dice
8 cups veg broth
1 1/2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into medium dice
1 cup dried quinoa
1 (15 ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch kale, coarse stems removed, torn into bite-sized pieces

First, prepare the herb blend by stirring all the ingredients together in a small bowl.

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium-high heat. Saute the leeks and garlic in oil with the salt for about 3 minutes, or however long it takes you to prep your carrot and parsnip. Add the carrot and parsnip, along with the herb blend, turn the heat to high, and saute for a few seconds.

Add the veg broth, potatoes and quinoa. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes, until the potatoes and quinoa are tender. Add the kale and beans, and cook, stirring frequently, until the kale is wilted. Cover and simmer over low heat for 5 more minutes. Taste for salt.

Enjoy!