Calzone

Name: Calzone
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 lb pizza dough (store-bought or homemade — see tips); 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese, drained; 1 ½ cups shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese; ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese; 1 large egg, beaten (for egg wash); ½ teaspoon dried Italian seasoning; ½ teaspoon garlic powder; ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional); Salt and black pepper to taste; 3 oz sliced pepperoni or Italian sausage (cooked and crumbled); ¼ cup marinara sauce (for dipping, not filling); 1 tablespoon olive oil; All-purpose flour for dusting

Published by Fork Around & Find Out Kitchen — presented in the Lila editorial voice. Editorial standards

Quick Answer

To make a calzone, fill one half of a round of pizza dough with ricotta, mozzarella, and your chosen fillings, fold it over, crimp the edges firmly, and bake at 475°F for 12–15 minutes until deep golden brown. Let it rest 5 minutes before cutting so the filling doesn't run.

Jump to Recipe

A calzone is basically a pizza that folded itself in half and immediately developed structural engineering requirements. The dough needs to be room temperature so it stretches without fighting back, the ricotta needs to be drained so the filling is not wet, and the baking surface needs to be preheated so the bottom starts crisping the moment it lands. Skip any of those and the calzone may still be edible, but it begins making decisions without you.

The filling stays intentionally thick: ricotta, low-moisture mozzarella, Parmesan, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and pepperoni or cooked sausage. Marinara stays outside for dipping. Putting sauce inside adds enough moisture to weaken the dough and the crimped seam, which is how cheese ends up escaping onto a 475°F pan and establishing its own little burnt municipality.

Roll the dough thin, leave a full border, fold, press, crimp, then cut a few steam vents in the top. Egg wash gives the crust its deep golden finish. After 12 to 15 minutes in the oven, let the calzones rest five minutes before cutting so the filling can settle and stop behaving like molten construction material. Crisp outside, cheesy inside, properly sealed—that is the entire calzone job description, and this method takes all three parts seriously.

Prep30 minutes

Cook15 minutes

Total45 minutes (plus 1 hour if making dough from scratch)

Serves4 servings

DifficultyMedium

Ingredients

Servings

1 lb pizza dough (store-bought or homemade — see tips)
1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese, drained
1 ½ cups shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 large egg, beaten (for egg wash)
½ teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Salt and black pepper to taste
3 oz sliced pepperoni or Italian sausage (cooked and crumbled)
¼ cup marinara sauce (for dipping, not filling)
1 tablespoon olive oil
All-purpose flour for dusting

Instructions

1If using homemade dough, let it rise fully and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes before shaping. Cold dough fights you. Room temperature dough cooperates.
2Preheat your oven to 475°F. Place a baking sheet or pizza stone on the center rack while it preheats — a hot surface under the calzone is what gives you a crispy bottom instead of a pale, sad one.
3Line another baking sheet with parchment paper and dust lightly with flour. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions for individual calzones, or keep it whole for one large calzone.
4On a lightly floured surface, roll or stretch each dough portion into a 10-inch circle, about ¼ inch thick. Thinner is better — thick dough won't cook through in the center.
5In a bowl, combine the drained ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella, Parmesan, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Stir until combined.
6Spread the ricotta mixture onto one half of each dough circle, leaving a 1-inch border at the edge. Top with the pepperoni or sausage, then sprinkle the remaining ½ cup mozzarella over the top.
7Do not add marinara inside the calzone. It makes the dough wet and the seal fails. The sauce is for dipping. This is the lesson I paid for with a ruined oven rack.
8Fold the empty half of the dough over the filling. Press the edges together firmly with your fingers, then fold the bottom edge up over the top and crimp it with a fork all the way around. This is a structural step, not a decorative one.
9Transfer the sealed calzone to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush the top generously with beaten egg — this gives it the deep golden color. Cut 3 small slits in the top with a sharp knife to let steam escape.
10Slide the parchment sheet directly onto the preheated baking sheet or stone in the oven. Bake at 475°F for 12–15 minutes until the top is deep golden brown and the crust sounds hollow when you tap it lightly.
11Remove from the oven and let rest on the pan for 5 minutes before cutting. The filling is approximately the temperature of the sun when it comes out, and resting lets it set so it doesn't pour out when you slice.

Nutrition Information

Estimated per serving: 1 of 4 servings.

720Calories

37 gProtein

62 gCarbohydrates

35 gTotal Fat

16 gSaturated Fat

3 gFiber

4 gTotal Sugars

1510 mgSodium

140 mgCholesterol

Estimated from the ingredients and quantities in this recipe using standard food-composition values. Brand choices, trimming, cooking loss, optional ingredients, and actual portion size can change the numbers. How we calculate nutrition estimates.

Pro Tips

Drain your ricotta before it goes anywhere near the dough. Set it in a fine mesh strainer over a bowl for at least 20 minutes. Wet ricotta is the number one reason calzones blow out at the seam.
If you're making dough from scratch, use 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast, 1 tsp sugar, ¾ cup warm water, 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tbsp olive oil. Bloom the yeast 5 minutes, mix and knead 8 minutes, let rise 1 hour covered. It's not complicated. It just requires patience, which is a resource I budget for this specific purpose.
A preheated surface is not optional. Cold sheet pan equals soggy bottom calzone. Take the five seconds to put the pan in the oven before you start assembling.

Substitutions

pepperoni → cooked Italian sausage, sautéed mushrooms, or roasted bell peppers Any filling works as long as it's not raw — raw vegetables release water and ruin the seal

whole-milk ricotta → part-skim ricotta Drain it longer — part-skim has more water and will make the filling looser

all-purpose flour dough → store-bought pizza dough Works perfectly well — refrigerate overnight for better flavor, bring to room temp before using

mozzarella → provolone or a mozzarella-provolone blend Provolone adds a slightly sharper flavor; both melt well

egg wash → olive oil brushed on top Less golden color but still gives a nice sheen; works for egg-free diets

Storage Instructions

Cool completely before storing. Wrap individual calzones in foil or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 375°F oven for 10–12 minutes — do not microwave if you care about the crust, and you should care about the crust. Freeze fully baked and cooled calzones wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and foil for up to 2 months. Reheat from frozen at 375°F for 20–25 minutes.

Make Ahead

Assemble the calzones fully — dough rolled, filled, sealed, and egg-washed — and refrigerate on the parchment-lined pan uncovered for up to 4 hours before baking. You can also freeze them unbaked: assemble, freeze on the pan until solid (about 2 hours), then wrap tightly and freeze up to 1 month. Bake from frozen at 450°F for 20–25 minutes.

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