Best Spicy Sausage Calzones Recipes

SAUSAGE CALZONES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 F.
• Brown sausage in a small skillet in a drizzle of olive oil. Transfer the cooked crumbled sausage to a paper towel lined plate to drain.
• Combine sausage with ricotta, parsley, garlic, Parmigiano, nutmeg, pepper, and pimento. Roll out doughs and halve cross-wise. Place a dough rectangle on a nonstick cookie sheet. Use 1/2 cup mozzarella on half of each dough rectangle and pile a mound of filling on half of the total area. Fold dough over and pinch edges to seal. The result is a rectangular turnover.
• For half-moon shaped calzones, trim excess dough. Roll dough bits into strips, tie in knots and brush with garlic oil and cheese. Garlic knots are fun to dip at the table.
• Bake calzones 15 minutes or until golden all over. Serve calzones with warm tomato, marinara, or pizza sauce for dipping.
• Cook's Note: For an additional time saver, 2 packages precooked sausage crumbles, 8 ounces each, may be substituted for raw Italian sausage used in the above recipe.
• Add olive oil to medium saucepan over moderate heat. Add garlic and crushed pepper to the heated olive oil; when pepper snaps and garlic sizzles, stir in crushed tomatoes. Season sauce with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Cook for five minutes and stir in parsley. Serve.
• Yield: 4 servings

SAUSAGE, SPINACH AND RICOTTA CALZONE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Combine 1 cup flour, undissolved yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add very warm water and oil; mix until well blended, about 1 minute. Gradually add enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Dough should form a ball and will be slightly sticky. Knead** on a floured surface, adding additional flour if necessary, until smooth and elastic, about 4 minutes. Cover and let rest on floured surface while preparing filling.
• Cook sausage in skillet over medium-high heat until cooked through; remove from skillet and drain excess fat. Add spinach and water to skillet; saute 1 to 2 minutes until spinach is wilted; drain. Return sausage to pan.
• Combine ricotta, mozzarella and egg in a mixing bowl. Stir in Italian herb seasoning, crushed red pepper and garlic salt; set aside.
• To make calzones divide dough into four portions. Roll 1 portion into an 8-inch circle on a floured surface. Spread approximately 1/3 cup ricotta mixture in center bottom half of dough. Top with heaping 1/3 cup sausage spinach mixture leaving outer 1/2-inch free of filling. Fold top half of dough over filling. Pull edge of lower crust over top; folding and pressing layers together to form a seal. Carefully transfer to greased baking sheet. Cut 3 to 4 vents in top. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until lightly browned. Transfer to cooling rack to keep bottom crust crisp while cooling slightly. Serve with pizza sauce or other sauce for dipping.

SPICY SAUSAGE CALZONES

Steps:

• 1. Begin by sauteing your onions in skillet. Add 1 lb. of ground pork sausage to skillet and cook until done.
• 2. Pour a jar of Ragu pizza sauce & a 4.5 oz. jar of sliced, drained mushrooms to a bowl.
• 3. Add meat and onion mixture to the sauce mixture. Stir thoroughly.
• 4. Divide large pizza dough (store bought or homemade) into six balls. On floured countertop or board roll out one ball at a time to an 8 or 9 inch circle.
• 5. Fill 1/2 of circle with meat/sauce mixture and top with mozzerella cheese.
• 6. Moisten edge of pizza dough circle and fold over in half and crimp.
• 7. Spray a large cookie sheet with non-stick spray and place first completed calzone on sheet. Repeat steps 4-6 with remaining dough balls.
• 8. Once all 6 lge. calzones on complete, whisk 2 eggs whites in a bowl. Using a pastry brush, "paint" your calzones with egg white and bake in an oven at 350 degrees for appox. 30 minutes. (Egg white will help them to brown).

SAUSAGE & SPINACH CALZONES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. In a large skillet, cook and crumble sausage over medium heat until no longer pink, 4-6 minutes; drain. Add spinach; cook and stir until wilted. Remove from heat., On a lightly floured surface, unroll and pat dough into a 15x11-in. rectangle. Cut into 4 rectangles. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on half of each rectangle to within 1 in. of edges., Stir ricotta cheese and pepper into sausage mixture; spoon over mozzarella cheese. Fold dough over filling; press edges with a fork to seal. Place on a greased baking sheet., Bake until light golden brown, 10-15 minutes. If desired, serve with pizza sauce.Freeze option: Freeze cooled calzones in an airtight freezer container. To use, microwave calzone on high until heated through.