Home » Blog » Course » Main Dish » Chicken Pesto CalzoneChicken Pesto Calzone Pin RecipeRate RecipePublished: Apr 29, 2022 · Modified: Aug 20, 2022 by Andrea + Stef · This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our full Disclosure Policy for details. Amazingly delicious pesto chicken calzones that are crispy and golden brown on the outside and stuffed with melty cheese, juicy chicken and tasty pesto. Jump to Recipe Only a few simple ingredients are needed to make these puffy, golden brown and incredibly delicious chicken pesto calzones. Ready to bake in the oven or air fryer in only 10 minutes, these folded pizzas are much more yummy than any takeout. Table of Contents WHAT IS A CALZONE?PESTO CHICKEN CALZONE INGREDIENTSINSTRUCTIONSRECOMMENDED TOOLSHOW TO MAKE CALZONES AHEADHOW TO MAKE CALZONES IN THE AIR FRYERTIPS FOR THE BEST CALZONESSTORAGE TIPSWHAT TO SERVE WITH PESTO CHICKEN CALZONESMORE CALZONE RECIPESFREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONSPesto Chicken Calzone Served with an Italian salad and marinara sauce for dipping, cheesy and flavorful chicken calzones are a wonderful and budget friendly weeknight dinner. These homemade pizza pockets with the most scrumptious filling of pesto, chicken, mozzarella, and parmesan will soon become a family favorite for pizza night. WHAT IS A CALZONE? A calzone is basically an oven-baked folded pizza. Just like regular pizza, calzones are made with yeasted pizza crust and filled with sauce and delicious pizza toppings of choice. Calzones are also often called pizza turnovers or pizza pockets. ❤️ WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS CALZONE RECIPE ✔️ Crispy crust, juicy chicken and tasty pesto are an amazing flavor combination. ✔️ You can easily personalize calzones with your favorite pizza toppings. ✔️ Calzones are ready to bake in only 10 minutes. ✔️ They make a great weeknight dinner served with Italian salad. PESTO CHICKEN CALZONE INGREDIENTS This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for chicken pesto calzone, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below. You may have all of these oven-baked calzone with chicken ingredients in your refrigerator or pantry and not need to make a trip to the grocery store. See recipe card below for ingredient amounts. Pizza Dough: Use your favorite refrigerated pizza dough from the grocery store or make your own. Have you tried our favorite homemade pizza crust recipe?Pesto: You can buy your favorite pesto at the store, or you can also make your calzones extra special by making your own pesto. We absolutely love this homemade pesto recipe.Mozzarella Cheese: For best results, shred your own mozzarella cheese. Pre-shredded cheese contains preservatives and doesn’t melt as well or taste as good.Parmesan Cheese: We recommend freshly shredded parmesan cheese for best flavor.Cooked Chicken: Any type of grilled or roasted chicken works well with this recipe. SaltItalian Seasoning: You can substitute plain oregano, or make your own Italian seasoning by mixing oregano, dried basil, and thyme.EggWater VARIATIONS: Try Different fillings and toppings! Not a big fan of pesto? No problem! Instead of pesto, you can also try other sauces in your calzones. We love white garlic pizza sauce, creme fraîche, tomato pizza sauce or marinara sauce. Check out our out of this world yummy marinara sauce recipe!Omit the pesto completely and fill your calzones only with chicken and cheese. Then serve different dipping sauces on the side, such as pesto, marinara sauce, pizza sauce, ranch dressing, BBQ sauce….Instead of chicken and pesto you can also use meatballs and marinara sauce to make incredibly delicious calzones. Follow our favorite recipe for meatball calzone. Blend your Italian seasoning with some garlic powder before sprinkling it on top of your calzones. INSTRUCTIONS This section shows how to cook pesto chicken calzone in the oven, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique. For full instructions, nutritional information, to print the recipe or to have the recipe scaled to double or triple, see the recipe card below. PREPARE: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. ROLL DOUGH: Divide pizza dough into two pieces. Roll out into a 6-8” diameter. ADD TOPPINGS: Spread equal parts pesto, mozzarella, parmesan and chicken into the middle of each calzone dough. 🔴 TIP: Keep the edges clean, when putting ingredients onto the crust. Keep them about 1 inch away from the edges, because any sauce or fillings on the edges will prevent the calzones from sealing properly. SEAL: Fold the calzone over and pinch edges together. Roll pinched edges and pinch again. 🔴 TIP: Make sure you seal the edges well. You can use a fork to pinch the edges by pressing it down all along the edges before rolling it if you’re having trouble getting the edges to stick together. SEASON: Whisk egg and water together. Brush calzone tops and edges with the egg wash. Avoid brushing the seam of the rolled edge to prevent the egg wash from opening up the sealed edge. Sprinkle with the Italian seasoning and an optional teaspoon of grated parmesan cheese. 🔴 TIP: OPTIONAL: Add ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder to the tops of the calzones before cooking. BAKE: Transfer calzones to the baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, loosely tenting them with foil the last 15 minutes to prevent the tops from getting too brown. Remove from oven when crust is firm and a deep golden brown. SERVE: Allow to rest 5 minutes then serve with Italian salad and marinara dipping sauce. RECOMMENDED TOOLS Rolling Pin – A rolling pin comes in very handy to roll out your pizza crust evenly, but you can also use your hands to stretch out the dough into rounds. You can also easily find a number of rolling pin substitutes in your kitchen such as wine bottles, drinking glasses, reusable water bottles, or beverage cans. HOW TO MAKE CALZONES AHEAD You can completely assemble your calzones and freeze them unbaked on a baking sheet. As soon as they are turning solid you can transfer them to freezer bags and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let them defrost or bake from frozen when needed. If you are baking them from frozen, make sure to add a couple of minutes of baking time. You can also freeze baked and completely cooled calzones. When ready to eat, let them thaw in the fridge overnight or bake from frozen in the oven or air fryer until heated through. HOW TO MAKE CALZONES IN THE AIR FRYER Roll out the dough into 4 inch rounds (They will be smaller than the ones that cook in the oven.)Prepare calzones as described in the recipe.Preheat the air fryer to 375°F.Spray the bottom of the air fryer basket/tray with cooking oil or line with parchment paper. (Make sure you add the parchment paper only together with the pizzas, so it stays in place. Use air fryer parchment paper or cut your own and poke a couple of holes into it.)Lay mini calzones into the air fryer. Cook for 8-10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and cooked through. TIPS FOR THE BEST CALZONES Follow these tips to make the best chicken pesto calzones. ✔️ Roll out your pizza crust on a floured work surface. Crusts should be 6-8” round. ✔️ Keep your edges clean. Place any sauce in the center of the crust. Keep away from the edges. Any sauce near the edges will prevent the calzone from sealing closed. ✔️ Generously fill your calzones. Fill the dough nice and full of toppings. Remember that cheese will melt down so don’t be afraid to add too much. ✔️ Pinch the edges together well. Then roll the crust edges. Try to make sure the top and bottom layer are bonded. ✔️ Be careful with the egg wash. When applying the egg wash, keep out of the rolled edge as much as possible as the egg will work its way in and unseal the edges. ✔️ Monitor your calzones in the oven. If your calzone is getting dark too quickly, cover loosely with foil. This will prevent it from getting too brown while still allowing it to cook. STORAGE TIPS Refrigerate: Let your chicken pesto calzones cool completely. Then store leftovers in an airtight container or ziploc bag in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat your calzones by microwaving or warming in the oven or air fryer. Freeze: Place the cooled chicken calzones in a freezer safe container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrosting: Thaw the folded pizzas in the fridge overnight, or cook from frozen at 350 degrees in the air fryer or oven until heated through. WHAT TO SERVE WITH PESTO CHICKEN CALZONES Serve chicken pesto calzones with a healthy side dish, such as our crispy and nutritious Italian salad or mouthwatering Antipasto Tortellini salad. Pesto chicken calzones also taste fabulous with our best ever marinara sauce. In case you are planning on surprising your family with a special Italian feast, additionally pair the calzones with Italian meatballs and a perfect chocolate lasagna. Easy Italian Salad Recipe With Homemade Salad DressingTortellini Pasta Salad RecipeThe Best Italian MeatballsNo Bake Chocolate Lasagna 4 Layer Dessert MORE CALZONE RECIPES If you love love chicken pesto calzones you’ll enjoy our other Italian recipes. Easy Three Meat CalzonesPepperoni CalzoneMeatball CalzonesEasy Baked Cheesy Meatball Sub Sandwich FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS For perfect results every time, here are answers to the most common questions about cooking calzones with chicken. What is the difference between a calzone and a stromboli? Although they both use most of the same ingredients, there are a few differences between calzones and strombolis. The most obvious difference is of course the sealing technique. While calzones are dough circles folded in half, strombolis are rectangles rolled up into cylindrical pizza rolls. Calzones are usually single servings while a stromboli is sliced up to be served to multiple people. How do I keep my calzone from bursting? Make sure you roll out the pizza dough evenly and not too thin. Don’t stretch the dough over the filling, it should cover the filling easily but not loosely. Carefully seal the edges by pushing down with a fork, then roll the edges and crimp like you would a pie crust. Keep the seals clean from egg wash, because the egg might work its way in and unseal the calzones. Can I make vegetarian calzone? Of course! You can fill your folded pizza with wilted spinach, pre-cooked mushrooms, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes or roasted bell peppers. Just make sure to get any additional oil or water out of your ingredients before filling your calzones. 5 from 5 votes Pesto Chicken Calzone Author Andrea + Stef Course Main Dish Cuisine American, Italian Prep Time 10 minutes minutes Cook Time 30 minutes minutes Total Time 40 minutes minutes Print Pin Rate 2 calzones Amazingly delicious pesto chicken calzones that are crispy and golden brown on the outside and stuffed with melty cheese, juicy chicken and tasty pesto. Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark Equipmentbaking sheet lined with parchment paperRolling Pinspoon or spatulapastry brush Ingredients 1x2x3x▢ 11 oz canned pizza dough or 1 large pizza crust recipe▢ ¼ cup pesto▢ 1½ cups mozzarella cheese shredded▢ ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated▢ 1 cup cooked chicken sliced▢ ¼ teaspoon salt▢ 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning▢ 1 egg▢ 1 tablespoon waterGarnish:▢ freshly grated parmesan cheese InstructionsPreheat the oven to 375°. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent the calzones from sticking to the baking pan.Divide the pizza dough into two pieces. Roll each half of the dough into a ball then roll them out with a rolling pin until they are about 8” in diameter.Spread half the pesto onto the center of each pizza dough round. Avoid the edges of the dough. Spread half the mozzarella cheese over the pesto. Sprinkle each with half the parmesan cheese. Top the cheese with half the cooked chicken slices. Fold calzone over and pinch edges together. Roll pinched edges up and pinch again. Whisk together egg and water. Brush egg wash over the top of the calzones. Sprinkle tops of calzones with salt and ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning. Optional: Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of grated parmesan cheese. Transfer both calzones to the parchment paper covered baking sheet. Loosely tent baking sheet with foil. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes or until the crust is a deep golden brown. Allow the calzones to rest for 5 minutes then serve with Italian salad and marinara sauce. NotesRecipe Notes: When putting ingredients onto the crust, keep ingredients about 1 inch away from the edges. You can use a fork to pinch the edges by pressing it down all along the edges before rolling it if you’re having trouble getting the edges to stick together. Optional: Add ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder to the tops of the calzones before cooking. Serving Suggestions: Serve with an Italian salad and marinara dipping sauce. NutritionCalories: 956kcal | Carbohydrates: 80g | Protein: 57g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 212mg | Sodium: 2519mg | Potassium: 279mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 1455IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 659mg | Iron: 6mg Did you create this? Share it on Instagram and follow us on Pinterest for more cleverly simply recipes. Email Recipe Pin Recipe Share Recipe PinShareTweet