Easy Calzones make for a fun lunch or dinner. A calzone is like a stuffed pizza pocket, filled with all the classic toppings – meat, cheese, and your choice of sauce wrapped in Pizza Dough.
Prep a handful of these to have on hand throughout the week. They reheat really well and are perfect for packing work or school lunch.
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Hi there! My name is Natalya and I run the blog Momsdish. If you already follow me, you know I can’t get enough of easy meals that require simple ingredients. This recipe is no different. Trust me, you’re going to love this homemade calzone recipe.
What is a Calzone?
Calzones are Italian turnovers that are stuffed with an array of ingredients. Pretty much anything that goes on a pizza can go into a calzone.
The fillings are placed on one half of the circular shaped pizza dough. The dough is then folded over, pinched and sealed, coated with an egg wash or olive oil, and baked in the oven until golden brown.
What is the Difference Between Calzones and Stromboli?
If you love calzones, you have probably tried its close cousin, stromboli. Stromboli vs Calzone – what sets them apart? Although both have similar ingredients, the way they are sealed is different. Calzones are pinched and sealed like empanadas and are handheld, while a stromboli is rolled up and sliced.
Calzone Dough
If you’re in a pinch, grab any store-bought pizza dough to make your calzone. If you want to elevate your home cooking game, make your own pizza dough.
As you’re rolling your dough out, pay special attention to the thickness. You want to make sure that the dough is thick enough to hold all the toppings and be folded over without breaking. ¼-inch thickness is the sweet spot.
Calzone Filling
Here are some different variations for you. Mix-and-match your ingredients to make the perfect calzone for your tastebuds:
- Cheese – Mozzarella, parmesan, sharp cheddar, feta and goat cheese.
- Meats – Salami, pepperoni, Canadian bacon, ham, bacon, chicken, Italian sausage, steak strips or meatballs.
- Veggies – Mushrooms, bell peppers, pepperoncini, marinated artichokes, spinach and red onions.
- Sauce – Use a red pizza sauce or white sauce.
- Dip – Each your calzone plain or dip your calzone in a little homemade marinara or ranch.
How to Make Calzones
Calzones at home are super easy. The best part about calzones is everyone can customize their own. Gather a ton of ingredients, lay them out and let your friends and family go at it! Follow these simple instructions to nail it every time:
- Divide pre-made pizza dough into equal portions and roll into a circle.
- On one half of the dough, spread all of your selected ingredients.
- Fold over and tightly crimp the edges.
- Cut air vents, brush with oil and sprinkle on parmesan. Bake at 475F for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.
For Larger or Smaller Calzones: Baking time may need to be adjusted based on the size of your Calzone.
Storing Calzones
To Freeze: Once you have prepared your calzones, you can freeze them while they are raw or cooked. Either way, place them on a baking sheet and allow them to completely freeze in a single layer. Then, store them in an airtight container or freezer-safe plastic bag.
To Reheat: Thaw frozen calzones in the refrigerator for 3 hours, or add more cooking time if heating from frozen. Bake raw calzones according to recipe instructions. Bake cooked calzones for half the time or until they are heated through.
Other Quick Lunch Recipes
- Reuben Sandwich – with a wonderful homemade Russian dressing.
- Philly Cheesesteak – A timeless sandwich with tender beef and cheese.
- Fish Tacos – Nothing says party like fresh, fish tacos drizzled in a tangy aioli.
- Costco Chicken Bake – A copycat recipe for the famous chicken bake.
- Pizza Rolls – A kid’s favorite and fun twist on making pizza.
Easy Calzone Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lb pizza dough
- 1 cup pizza sauce
- 1 cup pepperoni
- 1/2 cup salami
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 475 °F. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or spray it with oil.
- Divide the dough into 8 equally sized pieces. Roll each piece into a 1/4" thick circle.
- Place the filling on half of each circle (pizza sauce, ricotta, pepperoni, salami and shredded mozzarella). Make sure to leave the edges clean to allow for sealing the calzone. Fold the side over the filling and crimp the edges.
- Place calzones on a baking sheet, leaving space apart. Cut a small vent on the top of each calzone. Brush the tops with oil and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Super easy weekend lunch! I roasted eggplant slices and used those instead of pepperoni. Delicious! Took 10 min to put together.
I’m so glad it was quick and delicious for you! Thank you or your great review, Elizabeth!
Making this today. Used your pizza dough recipie. Looking good so far.
I hope you love this!
This is amazing and easy!! I substituted out the salame and added Canadian bacon and Italian sausage.
That sounds good, thanks a lot for sharing!
But how can I find your recipes through all the commercial clutter?
Hi Eric, the ads are the only way we can provide recipes for free to our readers. We found most people would rather see an ad than have to pay a subscription.
Seeing that we are being petty… I select what is an adblocker for $1,000.
LOL – good one, Cutter.
Also, looking forward to making this recipe.
Perfect recipe! Easy to follow, squirm, and delicious. 10/10 would recommend!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Todd!
I will let you know if it is authentic or not. I lived in Italy for 3 years so I know how amazing they are. They do put artichokes in Italy but I don’t like that.
Sounds good!
Hi, can you omit the meat toppings and just use sauce cheese and ricotta? What are some other toppings you can use?
I haven’t tried other toppings but feel free to do an experiment!
Calzones can have any toppings you want. If you’re vegetarian, you can do ricotta with spinach and parmesan and mushrooms and combine basically any veggies you want. Calzones are as versatile as pizza. Put anything in them that you would put on a pizza.
no u are not allowed to do that. you cannot choose your own fillings. sorry.
DUDE,you can pick and choose your fillings (like u can on a pizza).In fact, u can also use different types of sauces.So sorry.
Okay funny! 🤣. The “sorry” at the end was a great touch.
Using your pizza dough recipe, how many calzones would it make in total? Also, how big do you make a circle of dough for one calzone?
Hi Dawn the serving size is 8 for this recipe.
475 is too high for parchment paper. Paper burns at 450 – hence the title Fahrenheit 451! This could be why some commented that the bottom of their calzone burned
Hi Dee, we have little parchment exposed and haven’t had that issue. Spraying the pan and baking right on it will work.
As an alternative, you can spray the cooking tray with some oili and spread cornmeal to prevent it from sticking. This is the traditional way.
Same thing happened to me. A little scorched. Would tuck it under more next time.
I’m looking forward to trying this. I have a question – the recipe calls for 2 lbs pizza dough, but your dough recipe doesn’t have a weight. Is is one dough recipe for the 2 lbs?
Hi Lori, one recipe for pizza dough will work for this recipe.
My grandkids love these. I’ve used pizza dough from a can, crescent dough, and frozen bread dough. All are excellent.
Sounds great, Bonnie! Thanks for sharing.
I’ve never seen sauce inside a calzone in any pizza shop. In NY and NJ it’s always on the side. Interesting.
DeeDee, you are completely correct, Calzones do not have any sauce inside, that would make it lean toward being a Stromboli instead. Calzones are for dipping in a side sauce.
I’ve made these twice and although they taste great, my calzones keep opening up when in the oven spilling out all the cheese. I’ve tried to seal them two different ways but failed both times. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Panay! Are you cutting air vents for them? Also, be sure to not overfill the Calzones. You can try sealing the dough with some water, just lightly brush some water underneath the top fold where it attaches to the bottom fold. I hope that helps.
I’ve had them made with ricoots cheese. I didn’t like them because it was too heavy. I think I’d like it with mozzarella instead.
Hey Natasha , for the oven temperature are you sure it should be 475 instead of 375? . I tried the calzone and completely burned. I was thinking maybe it’s just a typo
Hi Monica, that’s right, we used a temperature of 475 Fahrenheit. Ensure your oven is calibrated and your pizza is not too close to the burners on regular bake mode.
I made this tonight without salami since I didn’t have any on hand. But it was still yummy! Just added extra pepperoni. Toddler approved! I love how you put the cost to make on the recipe!
That’s wonderful, glad your toddler loved this too!
My second batch of these was way better than the first. There was a little bit of a learning curve for me. Three suggestions – do not overstuff (which I really wanted to do!), use non-stick aluminum foil instead of parchment paper, and Trader Joe’s herb pizza dough makes great calzones.
Thanks a lot for your suggestions, Cindy! That is so helpful.
Not worth making. I have tried better ones in my life, though I believed in your recipe.
Hi Camille, sorry to hear that you didn’t like the recipe. Can you be more specific as to what happened when you tried this?
I attempted to make this last night. Did not know my dough needed to rest 4-5 hours 🙁 let it rest and the. Refrigerated it till tonight. My dough would not stretch out. I tried and tried. Kept shrinking back. So I gave up and went to plan B real quick. Used a can on biscuits I had in the fridge just to make dinner. I followed the dough recipe from here. I’ll try again another time and use the dough right away instead of putting it in the fridge. Otherwise really good.
I hope you give it another try soon Tiffany!
I just made some calzones the other day, very similar to yours. I make them small and fry them in vegetable oil, they are amazing. They must be small circles no bigger than 6 inches and then fold them over. It takes your calzones to a new level. Try it once, ,are them exactly as you did here but instead oof baking them, fry them. They must be small however.
That’s nice, thank you for sharing that with us!
This is what we call a PANZEROTI in southwestern Ontario—the BEST!!!! But def a treat for once in a while LOL😋