Y’all know how much my family and I love pizza night! I make an effort to do a pizza creation every week. Calzones come into the mix at least once a month. The great thing about calzones is that you can use the same great pizza dough that I use for all my homemade pizza creations – which I included below. This recipe for Classic Calzones is going to be a hit as they are perfect for a weeknight meal, and they keep really well for lunch the next day.
While this particular recipe is just for a pepperoni and cheese filling – you can change that up just like you do any pizza. You just want to have one thought of precaution – consider your liquid content. The items you put in will cook down and release their water content. So things like mushrooms, bell peppers and onions may cause things to get a little soggy. One solution is to precook the veggies by sautéing them in a little bit of oil, salt, and pepper, before sealing them into the calzone. Another would be to just use a smaller amount, so that it doesn’t become over powering.
Traditionally, calzones do not have a sauce on the inside and almost always has ricotta cheese. This is what makes it different from a stromboli (which doesn’t typically have ricotta cheese). That said – you can totally go off book and make different types of calzones like a taco or bbq chicken one. Again – just consider the liquid content of your ingredients and you will be golden.
The marinara dip is so simple but you will want to keep it in mind for all sorts of things. I like to add in the hot honey for two reasons. I always add honey to my tomato sauce to cut the acidity level. If you normally get heartburn from red sauces, adding honey is going to help you out immensely. I use hot honey for this particular dip, because it adds a fun depth of flavor to be added into the calzones when dipped. You can certainly use regular honey, if that is your preference.
Now Let’s Get Cookin’!
Classic Calzones
Ingredients
- 1 Pizza Dough see recipe below
- 32 oz Ricotta Cheese
- 4 cups Mozzarella Cheese shredded
- 12 oz Pepperoni
- 2 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Parsley
- 2 tsp Oregano divided
- 4 tbsp Butter
- ½ cup Parmesan Cheese divided
For the Marinara Dip
- 1 28oz can Tomato Sauce
- 1 tbsp Hot Honey
- 1 tbsp Dried Minced Onion
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
Instructions
- Prepare the pizza dough to the end of proofing. Divide into 6 equal pieces.
- In a small bowl, combine ricotta, parsley, garlic powder and half of oregano.
- Add ingredients for marinara dip to a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a bubble and then reduce to low to simmer until ready to serve.
- Preheat oven to 425degF.
- On a lightly floured surface, flatten out one portion of dough to a circle. Spread a portion of ricotta mixture on half of dough. Top with pepperoni and then mozzarella. Fold other half of dough over top and twist the dough around the edges to seal. Place on a parchment paper covered baking rack. Repeat with remaining calzones. (You will need to use two baking trays)
- Melt butter and brush over top of each calzone. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and remaining oregano. Place in oven to bake for 18 minutes. Remove and serve with marinara dip on the side.
Thin Crust Pizza Dough
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Yeast instant
- ⅓ cup Oil
- 1½ cup Warm Water
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 2 tsp Salt
- 4½ cups Flour
Instructions
- Prepare all of the ingredients
- In a large bowl, combine warm water, yeast, sugar, salt, and oil. Let sit to activate for about 10 minutes. Yeast should become foamy.
- Add flour to activated yeast mixture. Stir together until a sticky dough forms. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof for about an hour (until dough has doubled in size)
- Preheat oven to 425degF.
- Once risen, split into two equal halves. Add one half of dough to floured surface and use a rolling pin to press out into ¼-in thick in the shape of the baking sheet. Move to parchment paper covered baking sheet. Spray with cooking oil.
- Bake for 8 minutes.
- Continue to pizza recipe directions.
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