Last Friday night was an exhausting day. I have been volunteering at a local elementary school down the street on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday for the past 2 and a half months. I don’t start work until 10:30 so I have time in the morning to go in for about an hour and read a few students before heading to work. I have enjoyed it a lot and will miss it with school coming to a close for the summer. So, I left the house on Friday around 9:00 a.m. to volunteer. I left a few minutes early to stop by starbucks on my way into work because I knew I would be there until pretty late.

It was our Spring Fling on Friday night and I was going to be volunteering at one of the game booths. By the time work was ending, the Spring Fling was just beginning so I got over to my post. A few minutes later Andy, Emma June and Jon arrived to show support (I had forced them to). I spent the next 2 hours patrolling the todderland bouncy castle while talking to parents and smooching Em J. The main events were over by 8 and I was home and exhausted by 8:30 p.m. I showered, put Em to bed and then sat down to a beer while Andy and Jon worked hard in the kitchen making me dinner and refreshing my drink. I was pretty cranky from exhaustion when I got home but the wait staff and beers helped to brighten my mood. Thanks boys!

The Beer

Name: Liz Brown Ale

Brewery: Weasel Boy

Location: Zanesville, OH (about 45 minutes east of Columbus)

Type: Brown Ale

Percentage: 6.8%

Review: A great brown ale. I would definitely recommend it if you ever see it on draft. It had a nice thickness to it, typical of a darker ale. That is one of my favorite things about dark ales. I love the thickness that reminds me I’m not drinking water. On the other hand, this beer also had subtle hints of bitterness that remind you you are drinking a brown ale and not a porter. There are fine differences between the two and though I love me a porter, I don’t love a porter on an 80 degree day. I will, on the other hand, take a brown ale. The bitterness gives the thickness of sort of bite that makes it bearable on a summer evening. 

The Pizza Calzone

Ingredients:

     - Pizza Dough

     - Fresh mozzarella cheese

     - Ricotta

     - Parmesan

     - 3 vine tomatoes, sliced

     - pizza sauce

Directions:

1. Make pizza dough and set aside. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

2. Slice the tomatoes and cube the mozzarella, really however much you want to use.

3. Roll out the dough. Top with a layer of mozzarella, then a few spoonfuls of ricotta, then slices of tomatoes and a handful of parmesan. 

4. Top with another layer of mozzarella and fold over the dough to create a half circle. 

5. Pinch 3 or 4 holes in the top for air and put it in the oven for 10 – 12 minutes.

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Do you ever get a calzone instead of a pizza at a pizzeria? What are your favorite calzone toppings?