How to Make Calzones

Some would argue the calzone is nothing more than another spin on pizza, while others beg to differ that the calzone is in a whole different realm than pizza. In my opinion, it’s apparent the calzone is sometimes forgotten or never given the chance to captivate the taste buds of many pizzaholics. We’re here today to plead on behalf of flavor that you give calzones a chance. We’ve rounded up three of our best calzone recipes to share with all of you die-hard pizza fans. We're also going to show you the technique and steps on how to make calzones.

Technique for Making Calzones

So how is a calzone made? It’s pretty much what you’d expect from a pizza sandwich. Dough is rolled into a thin circle and half of the circle is filled with sauce, cheese and toppings. The empty half of the dough is folded over on top and the whole thing is pinched together to form one giant pizza pocket. The result is baked a little slower and at a lower temperature than a pizza. The top of this pizza pocket is often slathered with more sauce and cheese just before it’s finished cooking. We’ll be using this technique to create our tasty calzones with three different, over-the-top, mouth-watering flavor profiles.

Lamb Sausage, Mushroom & Grilled Onion

Ingredients

• One 8-10 oz. dough ball
• 2 Tbsp. ricotta cheese
• ¼ lb. cooked lamb sausage
• ½ red onion, sliced and grilled
• 1 C. Crimini mushrooms, sliced thinly
• ½ tsp. rosemary, minced

Chicken, Spinach & Artichokes

Ingredients

• One 8-10 oz. dough ball
• ½ C. grilled chicken
• Handful chopped spinach
• ¼ C. artichokes
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme
• 2 Tbsp. garlic white sauce
• ¼ C. ricotta

Prosciutto, Caramelized Onion & Arugula

Ingredients

• One 8-10 oz. dough ball
• 2 large slices prosciutto
• Small handful wild arugula
• 4 oz. Fontina cheese
• 2 tsp. grated Parmesan
• ¼ C. caramelized onion
• 1 tsp. truffle oil

How to Make Calzones

Generally speaking, calzones are made from dough that is rolled out thinner than when making a pizza. For this step, I like to use a rolling pin. A rolling pin makes it very easy to quickly stretch the dough thin. Once the dough is rolled out, it’s stuffed with cheese, sauce and ingredients, folded in half, and sealed up. This can be done by hand, but is also a bit easier with a calzone press.

• Start by proofing your calzone dough, removing it from refrigeration and allowing it to rest at room temperature least 2 but up to 4 hours before making the calzone.
• Roll out your dough ball to 1/8” thickness.

• If you recipe calls for cheese, spread the cheese on the bottom half of your dough first. Be careful to leave a ½” border at the bottom with nothing but dough, so you can seal up the calzone when finished.
• Pile any remaining cheese and toppings on top.
• Fold the top half of the dough down on top of the bottom and seal together, either by pinching together with your fingers, or by using the calzone press.
• Cut two ½” slits in the top of the calzone, so that it doesn’t swell up while baking.

• Bake on a pizza stone at 375°F for 25-30 minutes in your home oven. If using a Pizzeria Pronto, bake at 700°F for 12-14 minutes.
• If desired, in the last few minutes baking, add additional sauce and cheese on top of the calzone.

Tip: I brushed the calzone with olive oil 5 minutes before it finished, and turned on the broiler for the last minute of cooking.