Stuffed with creamy ricotta, spicy pepperoni, and gooey mozzarella these calzones are perfect on the grill or in the oven!

I seem to have a tiny bit of an obsession with pizza-things lately. I was looking over the blog this weekend as I was adding posts I’ve submitted to other sites and sprucing things up {like the brand spanking new mailing list} and spending ~~hours~~ days fixing old posts and I realized. I’ve gone a little pizza crazy over the last couple months! Not that I am in any way complaining or apologizing because I. Love. Pizza. If you hadn’t guessed that already from the pizza-splosion you’ve got it now.

I think we can safely say my obsession began when I finally discovered the PERFECT way to make pizza dough. Seriously. This dough is the best pizza dough I have ever made. And lemme just say. God bless the stand mixer. Because it makes this dough so stinkin’ easy to make. And boy do I make it. Over and over again. And over. Again. Because it’s so easy! I made it for this bacon chicken ranch pizza and these pizza poppers and now these calzones. And I totally see lots more pizza-y things on this here blog in the future.

I wanted to grill the calzones because I loved the way it amped up the flavor of this CPK pizza! Plus it’s hot in a house with no AC even if it’s only 75 degrees and breezy out. So any opportunity I have to take the heat outside and grill instead of making the entire kitchen an oven I’m going to take. And there is just something about the way cooking on the grill adds flavor. It’s amazing!

I made these with my favorite pizza place calzones in mind and they did not disappoint. Add to that that calzones in generally are super simple and you’re totally on your way to cheesy goodness. Because these things are packed with not one but two kinds of yummy cheese! The traditional calzone has ham but I really enjoyed these with pepperoni. And honestly you could stuff them with pretty much any pizza topping your little pizza loving heart desires and they’d be just as delicious!

I got three out of the 1/2 bit of dough I had left so you could definitely get six BIG calzones out of a full dough recipe. Or 12 small ones because I could only eat half before I was stuffed. Or however many of whatever size to feed the crowd you’ve got hanging out. Once you make this dough you’ll want pizza all the time. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

What’s your favorite thing to stuff into a calzone?

Grilled Calzones

Name: Grilled Calzones
Prep time: 1 h 15 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 1 h 27 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 2 cups warm water; 1 Tbs active dry yeast; ½ tsp salt; 5 cups flour; 2 Tbs olive oil; 3 cups ricotta; 3 cups shredded mozzarella; 4 oz pepperoni; 10 oz can pizza sauce, for serving

Yield: 6 calzones

Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 27 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups warm water
1 Tbs active dry yeast
½ tsp salt
5 cups flour
2 Tbs olive oil
3 cups ricotta
3 cups shredded mozzarella
4 oz pepperoni
10 oz can pizza sauce, for serving

Instructions

Sprinkle yeast over warm water and allow to proof for 5 minutes.
Add 2½ cups flour into yeast mixture and stir until combined. Add to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
Combine remaining flour and salt and add to the yeast mixture in ½ cup increments, mixing until completely incorporated.
Knead for 5 minutes and transfer to a well oiled bowl. Cover with a towel and let rise for 30-60 minutes or until doubled in size.
Once dough has risen separate into 6 equal pieces and pat out into a rectangle approximately 8x6 inches.
Spread ½ cup of ricotta cheese over half the dough, leaving about ½ inch at the edges for folding. Top with pepperoni slices and ½ cup shredded cheese.
Fold dough over and using your fingers twist the edges up and pinch them closed.
Place calzones directly on a grill heated to 400 degrees and cook for 5-6 minutes per side. Serve warm with pizza sauce for dipping.