We served calzones in the store a few Saturdays ago. They were such a hit that we decided to do it again only make breakfast calzones this time. So we bought five dozen eggs, ten pounds of sausage, and about twelve pounds of bacon and started making calzones early this past Saturday morning. Aly Nef was doing the baking again. Two hours in, she texted and said, “I’m just about out of eggs.” Five dozen eggs! How can you make that many calzones that quickly? I went and bought another six dozen eggs.
How do you make breakfast calzones?
They’re really pretty easy to make.
- Cook the ingredients. Stir them together in a bowl.
- Roll out the dough and cut into circles Place a circle on a dough press.
- Put a scoop of filling on the dough circle and fold and seal with the dough press.
- Bake them for 15 minutes (See complete directions with each recipe).
How much time does it take to make breakfast calzones?
Obviously, you can make a lot of calzones in a hurry once you’re set up. You’re not going to be as efficient with one batch and if your kitchen is like mine, you’ll have to hunt around for something. Figure an hour for a batch including the baking time. Except for the weekend, you may not have an hour to make breakfast before the gang starts out the door.
Do your prep the night before. Cook the ingredients and mix the filling. Put the bowl of filling, covered, in the refrigerator. Mix the dough and put it in a plastic bag or covered bowl. Then in the morning, all you have to do is roll out the dough, cut the circles, and fill and bake. Bake time is 15 minutes. Allow yourself a half hour to assemble and bake your calzones if you’ve prepped the night before. That’s reasonable.
Tips for Better, Easier Calzones
- You’ll need a little extra moisture in the filling. The ratio of crust to filling is higher with calzones than with pizzas. Plus the crust tends to absorb moisture. If the filling is not wet enough, the calzone will tend to be dry. You’ll see extra moisture in the recipes that follow.
- Roll the dough thin, no thicker than 1/4-inch.
- If you are making the dough from scratch, use a dough relaxer. It will eliminate the springback and make the dough easier to work with.
- Use a dough press. You can cut circles by tracing a circle with a plate and crimping the edges with a fork but a dough press is a lot easier.
- Brush water on the edges before you crimp them together. The water dissolves any flour that keeps the dough from being sticky.
The Recipes
Calzones lend themselves to freelancing. Take a breakfast pizza recipe or a breakfast burrito recipe and “morph it.” Or just add whatever you want.
County Line Breakfast Calzone Recipe
This is a mix and match pizza recipe converted to calzones. You can choose your own meat; we’ve used ham, bacon, and sausage. You can choose your own sauce; we’ve used marinara, salsa, whipped mustard, and ranch dressing.
Ingredients
1 pizza mix or recipe
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 small onion, diced
1/4 green or red bell pepper, chopped
3/4 cup diced ham, crumbled bacon, or cooked sausage
6 large eggs
pepper and salt
1/2 cup salsa or other sauce
1/2 teaspoon pizza and pasta spice or other blend
2/3 cup grated cheddar
2/3 cup grated mozzarella
Directions
- Mix the dough according to package or recipe directions. Set aside.
- Sauté the vegetables in the butter and scramble the eggs.
- Add the other ingredients and stir. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Roll the dough to a thickness of 1/4-inch.Use the dough press to cut circles. Place a circle in the dough press.
- Place a filling on the lower half.
- Brush water on the edges of the pastry. The water will help seal the dough seam.
- Use the dough press to fold the top of the calzone crust over the bottom and seal the edges. Be sure to press firmly enough to seal the edges.
- Just before baking, brush the crust with an egg white wash or olive oil. An egg white wash will give the calzones a satiny finish. Olive oil will make the crust browner and crisper.
- Bake the calzones on a dark pan on the lowest shelf of the oven to provide enough bottom heat to bake the bottom crust. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, until the crust is browned.
- Serve hot.
Bacon and Tomato Breakfast Calzone Recipe
This is one of my all-time favorite pizzas that we morphed into a calzone. This is good any time of day.
Ingredients
1 pizza crust mix or recipe
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoon fresh chives, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup cooked, crumbled bacon
6 large eggs
pepper and salt
3 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into chunks
2 teaspoon basil or more to taste
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
Directions
- Mix the dough according to package or recipe directions. Set aside.
- Mix the cream cheese and chives together.
- Scramble the eggs with salt and pepper. Add the cream cheese mixture. Add the bacon pieces, spice, and cheese. Add the tomato pieces.
- Roll the dough to a thickness of 1/4-inch. Use the dough press to cut circles. Place a circle in the dough press.
- Place a filling on the lower half.
- Brush water on the edges of the pastry. The water will help seal the dough seam.
- Use the dough press to fold the top of the calzone crust over the bottom and seal the edges. Be sure to press firmly enough to seal the edges.
- Just before baking, brush the crust with an egg white wash or olive oil. An egg white wash will give the calzones a satiny finish. Olive oil will make the crust browner and crisper.
- Bake the calzones on a dark pan on the lowest shelf of the oven to provide enough bottom heat to bake the bottom crust. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, until the crust is browned.
- Serve hot.
Bacon, Eggs, and Cheese Breakfast Calzone Recipe
This is a favorite calzone recipe. You can morph this into a pizza. Leave the milk out and spread the cream cheese over the hot pizza crust.
Ingredients
1 pizza crust mix or recipe
6 large eggs
1 small onion
1 teaspoon dry basil
2 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper
3/4 cup bacon pieces cooked to a crisp, about 1/2 pound uncooked bacon
Directions
- Mix the dough according to package or recipe directions. Set aside.
- Sauté the vegetables in butter and scramble the eggs.
- Immediately mix together the hot scrambled eggs, sautéed onion, basil, cream cheese, mozzarella, and cheddar. Stir until the cheese is melted. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the milk and cooked bacon. Your filling is now complete.
- Roll the dough to a thickness of 1/4-inch. Use the dough press to cut circles. Place a circle in the dough press.
- Place a filling on the lower half.
- Brush water on the edges of the pastry. The water will help seal the dough seam.
- Use the dough press to fold the top of the calzone crust over the bottom and seal the edges. Be sure to press firmly enough to seal the edges.
- Just before baking, brush the crust with an egg white wash or olive oil. An egg white wash will give the calzones a satiny finish. Olive oil will make the crust browner and crisper.
- Bake the calzones on a dark pan on the lowest shelf of the oven to provide enough bottom heat to bake the bottom crust. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, until the crust is browned.
- Serve hot.
Sausage and Egg Calzones with Ricotta and Spinach
Ingredients
1 pizza crust mix or recipe
4 large eggs
1 small onion
1 cup chopped fresh spinach
1 teaspoon dry basil
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup milk
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
Salt and pepper
1/2 pound cooked sausage, crumbled
Directions
- Mix the dough according to package or recipe directions. Set aside.
- Sauté the onion in butter and scramble the eggs. Immediately mix together the hot scrambled eggs, sautéed onion, basil, cream cheese, mozzarella, and spinach. Stir until the cheese is melted. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the cooked sausage. Your filling is now complete.
- Roll the dough to a thickness of 1/4-inch. Use the dough press to cut circles. Place a circle in the dough press.
- Place a filling on the lower half.
- Brush water on the edges of the pastry. The water will help seal the dough seam.
- Use the dough press to fold the top of the calzone crust over the bottom and seal the edges. Be sure to press firmly enough to seal the edges.
- Just before baking, brush the crust with an egg white wash or olive oil. An egg white wash will give the calzones a satiny finish. Olive oil will make the crust browner and crisper.
- Bake the calzones on a dark pan on the lowest shelf of the oven to provide enough bottom heat to bake the bottom crust. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, until the crust is browned. Serve hot.
Author Biography
Dennis Weaver has burnt food from Point Barrow, Alaska, to Miami, Florida. He is the founder of The Prepared Pantry in Rigby, Idaho and the author of How to Bake: The Art and Science of Baking available as an Ebook or as a Kindle book on Amazon.
He loves to help people bake and shares his vast collection of cooking and baking knowledge on his blog as well as in his Ebooks and Magazines.
Dennis lives in Rigby, Idaho, with his wife, Merri Ann. They have five wonderful children.
To learn more about The Prepared Pantry, visit our website at www.preparedpantry.com.
