Busy Day Cheese Calzone

Look at that cheese. And that dough... chewy on the inside, golden brown and crisp on the outside. Basically what calzone dreams are made of (hopefully I'm not the only one dreaming of calzones). Oh, and this is probably one of the easiest things you'll ever make.

So why did I call this "busy day calzone"? Because that was the kind of day I was having when I created it. The boys and I had just returned home from a weeklong ski trip and we were craving a home-cooked, comforting meal. For us, nothing says comfort like a cheesy calzone, hot and fresh from the oven. But there was a problem with that plan - when I make calzones, I use frozen bread dough - you know, the kind that takes 5 hours to thaw? It was already 4 PM, and we clearly didn't want to wait 5 hours. So I decided to try something...

YES, you can thaw dough FAST: I'm pleased to announce that I found a speedy way to thaw frozen dough. Here's what I did: I filled an 8-inch square cake pan with water (not completely full to the top, but close) and placed it on the bottom rack of my oven. Then, I preheated the oven to 200 degrees. Once the oven was warm, I turned it off. Then, I put the frozen bread dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet and placed it on the middle rack, over the pan of water. In a little over an hour (about 75 minutes), the bread was doubled in size and perfect for rolling out and stuffing! If you have time, certainly thaw the dough according to the package directions. But if you're rushed like me (or you forget), now you have a back-up plan!

Busy Day Cheese Calzone

1 loaf frozen bread dough (1 pound), thawed according to package directions or according to my speedy method above
1 teaspoon garlic powder or garlic granules
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
Marinara sauce for serving (warmed)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Roll the thawed bread dough out into a large rectangle, about 1/2-inch thick.
Sprinkle the garlic powder all over the dough. Top the dough with the mozzarella cheese, leaving a 1/4-inch border around the edges. Starting from the longer side, roll up tightly. When you get to the opposite side, pull the last bit of dough up to meet the roll (this helps prevent the cheese from falling out onto the counter). Pinch the ends and edges together to seal.
Transfer the calzone to the prepared pan, seem-side down. Brush the olive oil all over the calzone and sprinkle the top with the parmesan cheese.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the dough is puffed up and golden brown. Slice and serve with warm marinara sauce on the side.

Serves 4