Prop Styling By Chavi Feldman Photography By Hudi Greenberger 

The Nine Days is not the time to pull out all the stops and make gourmet meals. Yes, we do have to provide nutritious meals for our families, but they should be simple meals that reflect the time period. Therefore, I chose toned-down recipes, using readily available ingredients, that will keep your family full and satisfied. There’s something for everyone! 

Brynie 

Tuna Melt Calzone 

This is an absolutely delicious and easy light meal. Starting with store-bought pizza dough really cuts down on the prep time. I’m giving you the basic recipe and concept, and you can add or alter the veggies and seasoning as you wish. 

Serves 6 

• 1½ lbs (¾ kg) store-bought pizza dough
• egg, for glazing
• sesame seeds, for sprinkling

FILLING

• 2 cans tuna, preferably in oil
• 2–3 Tbsp mayonnaise, or to taste
• handful fresh parsley leaves, chopped
• 1 small–medium stalk celery, finely diced
• 1 scallion, chopped
• 1 carrot, grated
• 1 tsp yellow mustard
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1–2 frozen cubes pesto, defrosted or 1 tbsp prepared pesto
• grated hard cheese of your choice

In a medium bowl, mix filling ingredients together, aside from grated cheese. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).

Divide pizza dough into 6 equal parts. Roll each piece into a square. (Dough should be rolled to uniform thickness, to avoid holes during baking.) Generously sprinkle grated cheese on one triangular half of the dough, leaving a 1-inch (3-cm) border. Spread the opposite triangular half with the tuna mixture, leaving the same border. Gently fold the tuna side over the cheese side. Press to close. Use a fork to make marks all along the dough edges, pressing to seal. Continue until all dough and filling is finished. Brush with egg, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 12–15 minutes or until tops are golden and dough is baked through. Serve hot.

NOTE: You can personalize your calzone! For a cheesier tuna melt, spread grated cheese on the entire square of dough before adding the tuna. For great flavor, thinly sliced onions can be added to one side. Other add-ins can be finely chopped red peppers, grilled sweet potato cubes, diced tomatoes, crushed garlic, and/or olives.

TIP: Pizza dough can be bought in advance, and frozen until using. Defrost completely before making this recipe.

(Originally featured in FamilyTable, Issue 652)