Cime di Rape (Rapini) filled Calzone 

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Growing up in our Italian household we ate a great deal of pizza. My mother would whip up pizza dough quickly and in no time there would be pizza on the table. Her toppings were not very fancy, a simple tomato and basil, potato and rosemary or salami and onions. Sometimes anchovies or roasted peppers. They were delicious. Her dough was thick and moist and the crust perfect.  She was known for her pizza. When my siblings and myself had people over she made pizza for us. When there was a special celebration there was always pizza on the table, cold or hot. The one pizza we all fought over was her filled pizzas with rapini. We never called them calzones. Calzones are a traditional pizza originating out of Naples and named after the Italian word for the leg of trousers or pants. In our region they are just called "Pizza ripiena con rapini" meaning rapini filled pizza. My  mother's version of this consists of spicy and garlicky sauted rapini ( also known as broccoli rabe or cime di rape) and that is it.  We often ate this pizza on Good Friday to accompany our Pasta con Tonno (see previous post) but she also made it at other times of the year as well. Rapini is a healthy and flavourful leafy green vegetable with a slightly bitter taste. To remove some of the  bitterness it should be blanched in boiling, salted water first before preparing. 

As with all of my recipes the measurements for spices are just estimates. Don't like a spice? Then leave it out! If you feel you want more of one ingredients then add more! When it is enough for you is what QB signifies in my recipes. It is important to start with small additions of spices and then taste test and adjust as you go along. Quanto basta  is what Italian cooking is all about.  Let your taste buds be your guide!

The pizza dough recipe I use is available on an earlier post. It will yield about 8-10 calzones depending on the size. Make the dough first and then let it rest while you prepare the rapini. It will need a minimum of one hour rise time in a warm place like the stove with the light turned on.  

          

   

       

Ingredients

• pizza dough resting and ready to be filled ( it has had it's first rise)
• 3-4 bunches fresh rapini washed, trimmed and chopped into 2 inch pieces leaving the florets whole
• extra virgin olive oil
• 3-4 garlic cloves finely sliced (QB)
• 1 tsp of peperoncino (QB)
• salt and pepper

                         

Directions

1. Drain washed rapini and let sit in a colander over bowl to reduce liquid.
2. Put water on to boil in a large stockpot.
3. Sprinkle a generous amount of salt to boiling water and add rapini. Using tongs stir the rapini into the water and bring back to a boil.
4. Blanche the rapini for about 5 minutes and drain into the colander and leave in there.
5. Coat the bottom of a large skillet with a generous amount of olive oil and warm up.
6. Add garlic and peperoncino and allow to simmer and become translucent. Be careful not to burn the garlic or let it become deep brown
7. Add the rapini, salt and pepper and saute for about 5 minutes. Stir often so it does not burn or stick to bottom of pan. Add more oil if needed. Taste test and adjust accordingly.
8. Remove rapini from the pan and allow to cool completely.
9. Remove pizza dough from bowl and place on a floured surface. Using a sharp knife or a bench scraper cut the dough into the desired calzones you would like to make. I will sometimes make a few large ones and other times make individual ones. It is really up to you.
10. Take one piece and flatten with hands removing any air bubbles. Then roll it out into a circle as much as you can. Place some rapini in the middle and fold over the sides. Trim the sides if need to and crimp. Do not roll the dough out too thin. You want a thicker crust that will hold up to the fillings.
11. Place on a greased and floured cookie sheet ( I like to sprinkle my sheet with semolina flour). 
12. Brush a bit of olive oil on top of calzone (optional).
13. Repeat procedure until completed. Make sure to space the calzones well on your cookie sheets so they don't expand into each other.
14. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and tea towel and let rise for about 45 minutes on counter
15. Bake at 425 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Pizza is done when bottoms and tops are nice and golden. Keep an eye on your pizzas because bake times are just estimates as every oven is different. 
16. Allow to cool completely on wire racks before serving.

A Mangia!

Fatto con amore,

Elena💜