Easy Meatball Calzone

**Use what works best for you in this recipe!!! If you aren't one to cook from scratch, feel free to use prepared ingredients.

MEATBALLS: I'm a big proponent of making big batches of stuff and freezing it. When I make meatloaf, I make a BUNCH of it, divide it into 2 loaf pans, cook one that night and stick one in the freezer, then ball up the rest of it into meatballs that I cook in little mini-muffin tins while the meatloaf is cooking. Once the meatballs are cooled, they go in the freezer, too. So when I say this is easy, it's because I pull my prepared meatballs out of the freezer. If you don't cook from scratch, you can also use the Costco meatballs for this recipe. Also, I mix pureed spinach into my meatballs, but if you don't want to do that, you could always stir it into the sauce to sneak in some veggies. The dark green pieces end up looking like parsley and you can barely taste it.

PIZZA DOUGH: I no longer make my own pizza dough. Trader Joe's does it for me! I love their "almost whole wheat" pizza dough that is sold near the cheese and hummus. It's cheap (I think $1.29?) and freezes really well. I usually buy two and stick one in the freezer for last minute needs. But if you make your own pizza dough, great...or if you prefer the Pillsbury kind, perfect. Use what works best for you.

SAUCE: Again, I don't make my own sauce. Trader Joe's makes a great organic marinara...why reinvent the wheel when mine never turns out right anyway? But you can certainly make your own sauce for this recipe, too.

MEATBALL CALZONE

(a calzone is kind of like a pizza folded in half, but you need much less sauce and less cheese)

1 pizza dough, uncooked

1 cup pasta sauce or marinara

1/2 cup pureed spinach or broccoli

8-10 prepared, cooked meatballs

3 slices deli provolone cheese or 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Roll pizza dough onto a baking stone or lightly greased pizza pan. Arrange meatballs onto one half of the dough, about a 1/2 inch from the edge of the crust. Spoon sauce over each meatball and lay/sprinkle cheese on top. Fold the "clean" side of the dough over the prepared side of the dough, pinching the edges closed with your fingers. Cut a few slits in the top of the dough to allow steam to escape. Sprinkle mozzarella or parmesean cheese on top, if desired.

Bake for 15-18 minutes.

Easy and delicious. Kind of like a baked meatball sub. If you have big eaters, make 2. One barely feeds my family, so I have to add a salad as a side dish. Mike would eat this whole thing if I let him.