The calzone originated in Naples. There it is known and popular as pizza fritta to this day. As the name suggests, the calzone is not actually put in the oven, but fried in a pan in lard or oil. By the way, calzone literally means nothing more than “pants” in Italian.

It is traditionally filled with lots of ricotta, ham, mushrooms, mozzarella, parmesan and oregano. Especially in combination with the gratinated cheese and the frying in fat, it is very high in calories and the calzone fills you up. With our recipe we show that it can be a little easier…

Bella Italia, that’s something you should try at home.

Pizza Calzone – the recipe

What you need (for 4 servings)

500 grams of flour, 1 packet (7 grams each) of dry yeast, sugar, salt, 1 onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 can (425 ml each) of tomatoes, 2 teaspoons of dried basil, pepper, 420 grams of mushrooms, 120 grams of Parma ham in thin slices, 160 grams of grated pizza cheese, flour for the work surface, baking paper

This is how it’s done

The dough:

Mix 500 grams flour, yeast, 1⁄2 teaspoon sugar and some salt in a mixing bowl. Pour in a quarter liter of lukewarm water and knead everything with the dough hook of the mixer until a smooth dough is formed. Cover the dough with a towel and let it rise in a warm place for about an hour.

The sauce:

Peel the onion and garlic and cut both into small cubes. Heat some oil in a pan and sauté onion and garlic in it. Then add the tomatoes, which you then chop up with the spatula. Season everything with basil, salt, pepper and 1 pinch of sugar and let the mixture simmer for about 10 minutes. Then taste again.

Clean the mushrooms, wash them briefly and then cut them into bite-sized pieces. Put some more oil in a pan and heat it up. Fry the mushrooms in it and then season them with salt and pepper.

After a good hour of “rising time”, knead the dough again thoroughly and vigorously with your hands. Then divide it into four equal portions and roll each of them out on a little flour (about 20 cm in diameter).

Spread each piece of pizza with about a quarter of the sauce. Be sure to leave a margin of about 2 centimeters free. Now cover the pizza evenly with ham and mushrooms and add some cheese to taste. Sprinkle a little more basil on top. Then brush the edges of the dough with water and fold them in half. Press the edges firmly.

Place the pizzas on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese. Then bake in a hot oven (electric stove: 200 degrees/convection oven: 175 degrees) for about 25 minutes.

We wish you a good appetite!