Taco Calzones with Avocado Cream

I’d be hard pressed to choose a favorite between Mexican and Italian cuisines. I like preparing, and love eating, foods from both regions. It is for this reason that I was excited to find a recipe in the March 2009 issue of Cooking Light for Tex-Mex Calzones – an Italian concept with Mexican flavors. I set out to make my own version of this yummy-sounding meal, and came up with this recipe.

Taco Calzones

Makes 3-4 servings

Ingredients:

• homemade or store-bought whole wheat pizza dough – enough for 3-4 servings
• 1/2 lb lean ground turkey (7% fat)
• homemade taco seasoning blend, recipe follows*
• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 medium green bell pepper, diced (about 1/4 cup)
• 1/4 cup diced white onion
• 1/2 cup shredded “Light Mexican Blend” cheese
• 1/4 cup salsa of choice
• 1 avocado, peeled and pitted
• 1/3 cup 2% plain greek yogurt
• 1/4 tsp Kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450*.
2. Divide pizza dough into 3 or 4 portions, and roll each out into a circle. Place dough circles onto a baking sheet, and set aside.
3. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the onions have begun to soften.
4. Add in the ground turkey, and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring to crumble.
5. Stir in the green pepper and taco seasoning mix and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
6. Remove skillet from heat and stir in the salsa.
7. Divide the cooked meat and vegetables into 3-4 portions, and spoon each onto 1/2 of a pizza dough circle. Top the filling evenly with the shredded cheese.
8. Fold the other half of the pizza dough over the filling and pinch edges closed. Using the tines of a fork, pierce the top of each calzone a few times to let the steam out while cooking.
9. Place calzones into the oven, and cook for 10-12 minutes.
10. Meanwhile, prepare the avocado cream by mashing together the avocado flesh, yogurt, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
11. Once cooked, let the calzones sit at room temperature for a few minutes. Slice each calzone in half, and serve with the avocado cream.

I honestly couldn’t have been happier with the way these calzones turned out! The whole wheat crust crisped up nicely on the outside while remaining chewy on the inside. The taco filling was spicy, thanks to the jalapeno salsa I used, juicy, and cheesy. The avocado cream was the perfect cool and creamy accompaniment. This will definitely be a repeat meal!

*Homemade Taco Seasoning Blend (good for 1/2 lb of ground meat)

• 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
• 3/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp onion powder
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/8 tsp oregano