Piping hot, oven baked pepperoni calzones are a delicious, inexpensive alternative to the same old pizzeria take-out. We're stuffing our pepperoni calzone with a cheesy ricotta calzone filling made with three cheese and a blend of savory Italian spices. Serve it with a side of marinara for the perfect pizza night delight.
Calzones may seem tricky, but we'll show you how to make a pepperoni calzone the easy way using store-bought pizza dough. It's so fun, the kids will want to help! (Want to make your own dough? Try Andrea's pizza crust recipe.) Speaking of kids, these perfectly portable pizza pockets are also great for school lunches (and work!) so consider making extra.
❤️ WHY YOU'LL LOVE THIS PEPPERONI CALZONE
✔️ Quick and easy! Use premade pizza crust.
✔️ The perfect golden outside and cheesy inside!
✔️ Made in the oven, no special appliances or equipment.
✔️ Easy to make different fillings in each one.
PEPPERONI CALZONES INGREDIENTS
You may have all the ingredients for pepperoni calzones 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: We're using store bought pizza dough but you can also make your own using Andrea's pizza crust recipe.
- Cheese: Our ricotta calzone filling uses ricotta, shredded mozzarella and grated parmesan.
- Pepperoni: Fresh sliced pepperoni from your deli or pre-packaged work great.
- Salt
- Italian Seasoning
- Egg
- Water
INSTRUCTIONS
If you'd like to print this recipe, scroll down to the recipe card where you can print the recipe or have it scaled to double or triple. You'll also find nutrition information.
PREHEAT OVEN: Preheat the oven to 375°. Line your baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent the calzones from sticking to your pan.
ROLL DOUGH: Divide the pizza dough into two. Roll each into a ball. Roll out each piece to be about 8 inches in diameter.
COMBINE CHEESE & SEASONING: In a small mixing bowl, combine ricotta, parmesan cheese and ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning. Stir until well mixed.
SPREAD CHEESE MIXTURE: Spread half the ricotta mixture onto the center of each crust, avoiding the edges of the crust.
ADD PEPPERONI: Place half the pepperoni on top of the ricotta mixture. If you prefer, layer pepperoni, cheese mixture then more pepperoni and cheese mixture.
🔴 TIP: When putting ingredients onto the crust, keep ingredients about 1 inch away from the edges.
TOP WITH CHEESE: Top with half the mozzarella cheese.
FOLD DOUGH: Fold calzone over and pinch edges together. Roll pinched edges up and pinch again. 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.
MAKE EGG WASH: Make an egg wash in a small mixing bowl by whisking together the egg and water. Brush the egg wash over the top and sides of the calzones.
SEASON: Sprinkle the top of each calzone with ⅛ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning. Optional: sprinkle with ⅛ teaspoon of garlic powder on each calzone.
PLACE ON BAKING SHEET: Transfer both calzones to the parchment paper covered baking sheet.
BAKE: Loosely tent the baking sheet with foil. Bake covered for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes or until the crust of the calzone is a deep golden brown. Optional: brush finished calzone with olive oil.
TIPS FOR MAKING CALZONES
✔️ When putting ingredients into your calzone crust, be careful not to get ingredients caught into the edges you're sealing. Any moisture will prevent the two sides from sealing.
✔️ Cheese melts and shrinks once cooks so don't be afraid to put a lot of filling and cheese into the inside. If you don't put much your calzone will be very flat.
✔️ Don't skip the egg wash on the top of the calzones. This helps give the crust a nice, golden crispy outside.
STORAGE TIPS
Refrigerate: Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat my microwaving or warming in the oven or air fryer.
Freeze: Place the cooled meatball calzones in a freezer safe bag and freeze for up to 2 months.
Defrosting: Thaw in the fridge overnight, or cook frozen at 350 degrees in the air fryer or oven until it's warm all of the way through.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH A PEPPERONI CALZONE
Traditionally calzones are served with an Italian Salad and Marinara Sauce for dipping and often with garlic knots as well.
MORE CALZONE RECIPES
Once you learn how easy it is to make calzones you'll want to make them all the time and will want to make many different versions! Try one of these other great recipes!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Technically, a traditional calzone has no red sauce on the inside, but if you want to add it, we won't tell! In this recipe, we recommend serving marinara sauce on the side as a dipping sauce.
Our calzones use traditional pizza ingredients, so maybe a little. However, there is a little more dough used in ours compared to other ingredients so the texture is different.
The options are endless! We recommend using your favorite pizza combo such as all meat, tons of veggies, pepperoni and mushroom, or even sausage and broccoli.
Ingredients
- 11 ounces pizza dough
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 20-30 slices pepperoni
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375°. Line your baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent the calzones from sticking to your pan.
Divide the pizza dough into two. Roll each into a ball. Roll out each piece to be about 8 inches in diameter.
In a small mixing bowl, combine ricotta, parmesan cheese and ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning. Stir until well mixed.
Spread half the ricotta mixture onto the center of each crust, avoiding the edges of the crust.
Place half the pepperoni on top of the ricotta mixture. If you prefer, layer pepperoni, cheese mixture then more pepperoni and cheese mixture.
Top with half the mozzarella cheese.
Fold calzone over and pinch edges together. Roll pinched edges up and pinch again.
Make an egg wash in a small mixing bowl by whisking together the egg and water. Brush the egg wash over the top and sides of the calzones.
Sprinkle the top of each calzone with ⅛ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning. Optional: sprinkle with ⅛ teaspoon of garlic powder on each calzone.- Transfer both calzones to the parchment paper covered baking sheet.
Loosely tent the baking sheet with foil. Bake covered for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes or until the crust of the calzone is a deep golden brown. Serve with marinara dipping sauce.
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: brush finished calzone with olive oil.
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