Calzones with Sausage, Mushrooms and Olives
Pizza night just got portable with these sausage, mushroom and olive calzones.
If you were to know just one thing about me, it’s that I love to bake sweets. Duh. But, if you were to know two things about me, it’s that pizza is my most favorite non-sweet to bake. Pizza night is a near weekly, cherished tradition in our house.
You don’t mess with pizza night, unless it’s with calzones. The original “hot pocket”, calzones are individually portioned and can be filled with practically any ingredients you like, though I’m pretty partial to this combination of sausage, mushrooms and black olives.
These calzone are perfect for a picnic, hearty lunch box meal, or game day potluck. Make them as big or small as you like, depending on whether you’re feeding your small family or a large crowd.
How to freeze calzones for later
Calzones freeze very well, so make a double batch and freeze half for a quick and easy meal later! Here’s how:
1. Bake calzones according to recipe instructions and allow to cool completely.
2. Tightly wrap in plastic wrap.
3. Put in a freezer plastic bag.
4. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.
5. To reheat, remove from plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 2-3 minutes, flipping halfway through, or warm in a 300 degree F oven for 10-15 minutes until heated through.
This recipe was developed in partnership with Go Bold with Butter, along with this awesome all-butter pizza crust.
Calzones with Sausage and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1 recipe Pizza Crust
- ½ pound ground sausage
- 2 cups cremini or button mushrooms , sliced
- ¼ cup sliced black olives
- Salt and pepper , to taste
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 2.25 ounce can sliced mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon fresh herbs such as sage, rosemary or thyme , chopped
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese , shredded
- ½ cup parmesan cheese , grated
- 1 egg + 1 teaspoon water , for egg wash
- 2 cups marinara sauce , for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
- Prepare Butter Pizza Crust. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces and roll out into thin circle about 6 inches wide. Transfer to sheet pans.
- In large skillet set over medium high heat, brown sausage. Transfer to paper towel lined plate to drain. Drain all but 1 tablespoon of sausage grease from pan. Return pan to heat, add sliced mushrooms, olives and garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until mushrooms are browned. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
- In bowl, combine sausage, mushrooms, herbs, mozzarella and parmesan. Spoon about ½ cup of mixture into center of each pizza dough round.
- Fold dough over to make half-moon shape. Crimp edges to seal. Brush with egg wash and bake until golden, 25-30 minutes. Serve with marinara sauce, for dipping.
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Looks wonderful. Calzones are just the perfect thing for dinner. And I love anything that can be frozen. A great time saver.
These are so pretty!! I agree that I am a huge fan of making my own pizza, but can also get behind calzones every so often! Especially ones that involve sausage and mushrooms 🙂
I’m a sucker for make your own calzones. These look great and that crust is awesome.
Thanks for the freezing tip! I am going to bunch of these and stash them away because nothing is better than a pizza pocket!
I looooove anything pizza and calzones perfectly hit the spot. Actually I’ve never tried this flavor combo before but it sounds delicious, I’m always happy to have another one to add to my rotation, yay!
xo, Elisa
Thanks Elisa! What are your favorite calzone filling ingredients? I could use some more inspiration, as I feel “Calzone Night” is going to be a regular thing now too!
It totally should become a regular thing, in my opinion ;P I really like to fill mine with roasted vegetables and provolone cheese, or the classier flavor combo made of spinach and mozzarella, or again zucchini, bacon and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese…these are my all time favorites!
Annalise – thank you for sharing (and the wonderful photos). We are a weekly (sometimes bi-weekly) pizza night family as well and never tire of it. I once worked for Pizza Hut in college and had no problem eating pizza nightly! Yea, I know! But Calzones are a particular favorite and seeing how relatively easy they look to make, I think I might’ve found something new to try on the kids! Thanks!
Thanks David! You know, I don’t think I’d have a problem with nightly pizza either! 🙂