Discover how to make delicious gluten-free calzones on a budget! Easy recipes and tips for a tasty, affordable meal.
Delicious and Budget-Friendly Recipes for Gluten-Free Calzones
In recent discussions surrounding dietary options, a compelling alternative to traditional pizza has emerged, particularly focusing on gluten-free varieties. Many individuals are discovering that they can create delicious homemade pizzas without the need for gluten, catering to both dietary restrictions and personal preferences. This shift not only enhances the eating experience for those with gluten sensitivities but also opens the door to a wider array of ingredients and flavors that can be utilized in pizza-making.
The idea of never buying pizza again encourages a more hands-on approach to food preparation, inviting enthusiasts to experiment with various crust alternatives, toppings, and sauces. By embracing this trend, people can tailor their meals to suit their nutritional needs while also enjoying the creativity involved in crafting their own unique pizzas. This movement reflects a growing interest in health-conscious eating and the desire to reclaim control over one’s diet through homemade options.
Deliciously Deconstructed: Crafting Budget-Friendly Gluten-Free Calzones That Wow!
Hey everybody, it’s Amanda. I’m sure you guessed by my community post that I said that I would be making calzones this week. Now, something that I wanted to let you guys know is this recipe works both ways. Not just gluten-free, but for regular dough as well. The one thing that I really like about Kzones is it’s just like having a giant pizza pocket,.
But it’s also less messy. And you know, if you really wanted to, you could use the same dough recipe for pizzas as well. And this is the cheapest way I found to make pizzas for my family, especially since everybody wants extras, seconds, thirds. So, before you go buy a pre-made pizza from a pizza place or go to the freezer.
Section, you might want to think about making your own pizzas for absolutely cheap. I mean, I think that I can make even gluten-free pizzas for under the amount of a frozen pizza. I’m not joking. Pizza is always a easy go-to for parties. And you know, if you wanted to do a mini pizza party with this, you definitely could. Um, I also like that.
You get to choose your own toppings. So, even if you had a little topping bar where you choose what you want on it, everybody gets what they like. I’m going to go over the list of ingredients that you will need. Now, I use one to one flour when it comes to gluten-free cuz I don’t I don’t know. I’m not the mix and match gal. I like to know that it’s.
Going to come out just like it should. And surprisingly enough, pizza dough is really super easy to make and it’s super cheap and you don’t need all that many items. So, we’ll go over the recipe. You need 2 and 1/2 cups of glutenfree flour or regular flour of your choice. I use one, so this recipe works best with one flour, which is the Bob’s Redm Mill. I.
Then add around two tablespoon of oil. I just use the cap and I will rinse it off afterwards, don’t worry. Um, however, if you find that you’re having a hard time with your gluten-free dough, you might want to add a little bit more oil to get it to stick together. So, next I’m going to add a tablespoon of salt. Now, you could add a.
Little bit of sugar to this to give it a little bit of a different flavor. Um, but I tend to only use the salt. Sorry, I had to change my glove because my other glove got oil on it and that would drive me crazy because I have a little bit of OCD bestie. So, as I’m adding the tablespoon of salt, I just wanted to mention that you’re going to want to.
Probably put all the dry ingredients together before you add any sort of water because you are going to be using yeast. Now is also the time to add some of your seasonings. I tend to use lots of garlic on pizza. You can use garlic, onion powder. Um I also am going to be using oregano. The only reason I I know it’s a heaping a heaping spoonful of.
Garlic. We like garlic in this household. Little bit of pepper. Um the only reason I am not using Italian seasoning is because I could not find it at the store to save my life. I even went to the Dollar Tree. I’m like, who’s got all the Italian seasoning? So, we’re adding the oregano in there. Um, just just add it to whatever you feel would.
Taste good. You know, that that’s kind of how I feel about seasonings. So, now we’re going to be adding yeast. Now, one thing about yeast is you want to use the rapid stuff when you’re making things like pizza. You can use the active dry yeast as well. Do not use the bread one. Don’t do it, bestie. It’s not worth it. it messes everything up. So, yeah, do.
The rapid or active yeast. That way, you don’t have to wait a million years for things to do what they’re supposed to do. So, we have the yeast added in there. I did want to also let you guys know that I do tend to mix it with my hands. I know I have a bread maker. I could put it in, but this is how I’ve been making pizza forever. Now, we’re.
Going to add 1 and 1/4 cup of water. And you want to make sure that it is lukewarm water, not hot water, lukewarm water, because it’s going to activate that yeast. So, now it is the most important time. This is how it all comes together. Okay, we’re adding the water. You’re seeing that there. But let me tell you, bestie, this is the.
Best way to get the perfect dough. Mhm. You see what I’m doing? I’m doing a kneading motion. Essentially, I’m grabbing in a circular motion and I’m going to be kneading the dough until I can’t anymore. Yes, you’re going to be kneading your dough for quite a bit of time. This is where the bread maker.
Would come into play. And if you really wanted to, you could throw this all into the bread maker now and do the kneading feature on your bread maker. And I know you’re like, “What does that mean?” Mine just says pizza dough, so that’s what I would do. But I just keep kneading away because this is what I’m used to doing to make pizza. I have been making pizza.
For a really long time. And as a matter of fact, I think that I have professionally been making pizza off and on throughout my food career for the last probably 10 to 15 years. I know it seems a little crazy, but you just want to you want to knead this thing as much as you can because you want to make sure that everything is mixed in there and.
That yeast really becomes active. Now that all of the kneading is done, it is time to chill your dough. Mhm. You’re going to want to chill your dough for at least 20 to 30 minutes. Any longer than that, I find it to be kind of a pain in the neck to roll out or try to stretch. So, put that dough ball in the middle of some parchment paper. And then you are.
Going to stick it in the fridge. But here’s the kicker. I can’t just make one dough ball. I have to make two dough balls. So you could double this recipe as well, but I like doing it one at a time. That way I know I get all the ingredients correct. And then I’m going to chill it in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes. So, while your pizza dough is.
Definitely chilling, you’re going to put yourself to work because we got some other things to homemake. Um, I have a can of tomato paste that I got from the food bank. Um, the only reason I got that, I think, is because the label was on upside down. Okay, so we’re going to add some garlic. We’re also going to add some pepper. And we’re going to add some.
Oregano. And then you’re going to mix it all together until you can’t see any of the garlic or the pepper and it’s all mixed in there really good. Okay. Now, of course, you can buy your own sauce at the store in the sauce section usually with all the pasta sauces and stuff like that. But the problem that I find with that is that they’re really watery and I.
Don’t want my dough to get watery because then it’s going to not be that perfect crust. Also, as I am making the sauce, I’m realizing that it’s also time to make other things as well. So, let’s throw away this can. We’re going to make some butter garlic sauce. So, if you see these little wet spots, that is from me.
Cleaning this workspace that we’re working in. Um, I do have some margarine. I can’t afford butter. We’ll be real. I just use margarine. I know it’s probably bad for you. I don’t really care cuz um I can’t afford $7 butter, but if you want to use regular butter and or salted or unsalted, whatever floats your boat and makes you.
Happy, use what you got. By the way, I got my butter brush at the Dollar Tree. All you’re going to be adding is some oregano or Italian seasoning. And of course, you can’t forget about the garlic. You cannot forget about the garlic. Now, I buy all of my spices in bulk. So, you know, I’m not worried about how much I use because.
That’s how we flavor the food around here, specifically gluten-free food. because let’s be real, some of that gluten-free stuff is not the best. It does not taste the best. So, then I just put it in the microwave. And then I’m going to take my my butter stir brush and I’m going to brush uh all of the contents on the bottom of this measuring.
Cup in with the butter until it is totally smooth and you don’t have any extra little bits and pieces on the bottom. So there you go. Now we are going to assemble our pizza. We’re going to use parchment paper. I use it on the bottom and I use it on the top. So these have been cooling long enough. You don’t want.
Them to be brick hard, let me tell you, cuz it’s already going to be a pain in the neck to do this next process. And if you’re making regular pizza, you are going to be in for some work. Okay, so I’m going to smash down the dough ball a little bit. Now, mind you, I have learned a lot about making pizzas over the last probably 10, 15 years working.
At multiple pizza places. So, I then grab my rolling pin and I just kind of make a little bit of indents into it, you know, just to get it started. And that helps out a lot as you can see. And then I’m going to do it again and roll at the same time because this dough ball is going to be kind of chilly and it may even be harder to roll than you Think.
All right, you guys. So, I’m just going to finish this off. I’m going to make it a little longer and wider because we need to make sure that we’re able to put our toppings in the inside of this and we’re basically making a big pizza pocket or as they say, calzone. Now, the one thing I have learned working in pizza is that I can braid any type of.
Dough, but the one that is a pain in the neck is going to be this gluten-free dough because it does kind of fall apart. Stay there. Don’t move any further. Sometimes that rolling pin. So, I’m going to use about half of the sauce on this one because we have one more to make after this. and they’re basically going to be cousins, not twins. So,.
You’re going to want to do half of the sauce um on half of your dough. Okay? So, you’re just going to be spreading that out. And I try to make sure it’s pretty even. That way, when you take a bite of the Kelzone, you’re not just getting a bunch of sauce or a bunch of cheese. I try to make sure everything is pretty.
Even. So, I know it looks like I’m putting on a lot of cheese here, but honestly, you guys, this cheese needs to be used up because it’s getting close to its expiration date, and I freeze cheese. I’ve been freezing cheese for years, especially shredded cheese. So, that is the cheese toppings. Now, I’m going to.
Add the pepperoni. And you’re going to want to make sure because pizza does shrink. I know most people don’t know that. Um, but you’re going to want to put all of the toppings towards the middle because it’s going to shrink into the middle. Um, you would normally want to get your toppings such as like um your meats and some of your veggies.
Closer to the edge if you’re going to be making regular pizza, which I will show you guys how I make pizza with both regular and gluten-free crust. So, I’m just adding the pepperonis onto this. I just needed another handful. Also, someone asked me why I started wearing the gloves in these videos. And honestly, it just keeps people from.
Thinking that I’m not washing my hands, and I do use quite a bit of gloves. And I’m also used to it anyway because, like I said, I’ve been working food forever now. So, this is the braiding process. You would normally braid the dough, but unfortunately, due to the fact that this is gluten-free, it does not like to braid very well. Remember when I said.
You might want to add a little bit more oil? This would be the time where you’d wish that you added more oil. I have to move that rolling pin. It’s driving me crazy. All right. So, I do a method where I just pinch it close now because the braiding is not going to be happening and it’s not going to look as pretty. But you know what? This is going.
To be edible and that’s all that really counts, right? And it’s going to look pretty. I promise I’ll still make it look pretty. It’s just not going to be braided like regular dough because gluten-free stuff tends to fall apart, okay? Even if you let it sit or even if you put it in the fridge and, you know, you wait to cook it. So, it has a little.
End over here that’s not perfect. Oh well. So, that is the final touch. However, I have to tell you, you’re going to want to make sure to put some slits into your um calzone. Otherwise, if you don’t, it could explode. Mhm. It could decide to get really big in the center and just pop right open and go all over your oven, and that would suck.
To clean up. Next, I’m going to go ahead and brush the butter, garlic, oregano mixture onto the top of this calzone because we want to make sure that this is extra tasty. And you know, if you ever wondered, um, places like Domino’s, they do the same method on their dough crust. Okay. So, if you ever wondered how they did it, they do it like this.
Another thing you could do that I should have done was I could add some Parmesan cheese to this as a extra flavor. Because pizza dough is pretty bland by itself, you’ll want to season it the best you can. So, I’m just going to go ahead and cut away or tear away at the parchment paper that is left underneath the pizza pan. Now, one thing that has.
Been a lifesaver for me, and if you haven’t figured this out yet, or you needed um someone to say it’s okay to go get more than one pizza pan, do it, bestie. Especially if you have a bigger family, because this can definitely help out a lot. A lot. And when you go to cook both of these at once, it’s not like you’re waiting 20 minutes and you.
Got a kid sitting uh at the end of a table going, “Hey, mom, where’s my calzone? Where’s my pizza?” So, this is the finished touch. And it does look like a giant pizza pocket, but it is very, very hot. I didn’t show you guys it pulling apart. I apologize. But this is what it looks like on the plate. This is my.
Husband, Jordan’s.
