These Easy Calzones are filled with all the classic pizza toppings, mozzarella cheese, and pizza sauce and they couldn’t be easier to prepare! They can be prepped and made in advance or freeze them for busy weeknight dinners.

Want a fun twist on pizza night? Calzones are great to get your kids involved in the kitchen and have some fun with it. Yes, I know… Kids + cooking usually doesn’t equal to too much fun but take a deep breath, grab a cold diet coke and relax. It CAN be fun!! 😉 The kids will go crazy over these, especially if they each make their own and decide what toppings to pick. That list can be endless or you can stick with the classics. Their proud lil faces just make that chaotic, crazy mess in the kitchen worth it.

Toppings

• Classic – pepperoni or just cheese, cheese and more cheese 
• Veggie – tomatoes, red onion, green peppers, sliced mushrooms
• Meat Lovers: Italian sausage, ham, bacon crumble, pepperoni
• Canadian: pepperoni, bacon crumble, sliced mushrooms
• Supreme: pepperoni, mild sausage, green peppers, red onion, sliced mushrooms, olives
• BBQ Chicken: seasoned grilled chicken, red onion, green peppers, BBQ sauce
• Hawaiian: ham, bacon, pineapple tidbits  
• Italian Classic: Italian sausage, pepperoni, sliced mushrooms, roasted red peppers

We love pizza in this house! We will never, ever turn it down. If my kids had their way, we’d have pizza every night! We love having it on the weekend and with my Homemade Pizza Dough, it’s such a quick dinner to throw together in a short amount of time. You can use that same recipe for the calzones and in 20 minutes you’ll have perfectly crispy, hot, cheesy pizza pockets. YUM! Don’t forget extra pizza for dipping. That’s the best part!

What is a Calzone?

A calzone is an Italian turnover that is filled with your choice of your favorite pizza toppings. It starts out with small circular shaped pizza dough. Your fillings are placed on one half and then the dough is folded over, pinched and sealed, so all the good stuff stays inside. Before baking them, brush the tops with melted butter and bake until golden brown. The fun thing about calzones is that you can be as creative as you want with your filling! All the picky eaters unite 😉 ! Calzones normally don’t have a pizza sauce in them since you’re supposed to dip them but we love doing both! I find they’re a bit dry without sauce and the sauce gives them a great burst of flavor, too.

Yield: 4 calzones

INGREDIENTS

• Homemade Pizza Dough
• 1/2 cup pizza sauce, more for dipping
• 1/2 cup green peppers, diced 
• 1/2 cup pepperoni 
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded 
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted 
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Divide the pizza dough into 4 equal pieces. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface, shape into balls and then roll into 1/4 thick circular shapes. 
3. On half of each dough circle, spoon equal parts of sauce, green bell pepper, pepperoni and mozzarella cheese. Leave room around the edges so you can easily fold them in half, then crimp edges all around.
4. In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Brush the tops of each calzone with the mixture.   
5. Using a sharp knife, cut 2-3 small vents on the top of each calzone and place them on to the baking sheet.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the calzone is golden brown. 
7. Remove from the oven and let them cool for 5 minutes. Serve with warmed pizza sauce.

RECIPE NOTES

• Store-bought dough: If you’re pressed for time, feel free to use a good quality store-bought pizza dough and use according to package instructions. Just roll into equal portions, fill and bake! 
• How to freeze: Once they are baked and cooled, wrap calzone in plastic cling wrap or in a freezer bag. They freeze nicely for up to 3 months. Allow them to defrost in the refrigerator first, then reheat in the oven.
• How to reheat: Reheat in the oven at 350F for 5-10 minutes. 
• How to store leftovers: Once cooled, wrap in plastic cling wrap or place in an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.