This vegan calzone recipe makes an amazing dinner, perfect whenever you want takeout food at home! It’s completely customizable and can be filled with whatever sauces, cheeses, vegetables and vegan meats you like.
Vegan cheese is notorious for not melting well on homemade pizza, but all the dairy free cheeses I’ve tried melt perfectly inside a calzone. So, get ready for delicious, melty cheese in every bite!
Vegan Calzone Ingredients
There’s two main parts to this recipe, the calzone dough and the filling ingredients.
I have a full post on how to make homemade vegan pizza dough, so check that out if you need more details (its full recipe is provided below in the recipe card).
As for the filling ingredients, I’ve kept it classic this time and will use:
- Pizza sauce
- Vegan mozzarella-style cheese shreds
- Smoky tempeh strips (cut into small pieces)
- Sliced mushrooms
- Sliced green pepper
See further down in this post for the ultimate list of vegan calzone filling ideas!
How to Make Vegan Calzones
This recipe is easy enough to make but requires you to make dough then roll it out and form the calzones. The process might seem intimidating if you’ve never done it before but it’s well worth the effort!
Step 1: Make Calzone Dough
I have a full post on how to make vegan pizza dough so if you need more than a brief overview of the process, please read it too.
To start, activate yeast in lukewarm water along with sugar. Once foamy, add salt, olive oil and most of your flour.
Stir until a ball of dough starts to form, then switch to kneading the dough for a few minutes. The dough should feel tacky but not stick to your hands when properly kneaded. Add extra flour as needed to reach this texture.
Lightly oil your mixing bowl and dough, then cover the dough with a kitchen towel to let it rest for 20 minutes.
Step 2: Prep Filling Ingredients
While the dough rests, prepare your filling ingredients. Use any sauce, vegan cheese, vegan protein, veggies (and/or fruits), herbs and spices you like.
Step 3: Assemble Calzones
When the dough has rested, preheat your oven to 425 °F.
Cut the dough into four pieces (you can cut it into more pieces for smaller calzones).
Take one piece and shape it roughly into a circle, then place it onto a well-floured surface. Roll the dough into a circle as thin (or thick) as you prefer. The dough will nearly double in thickness once baked.
Add extra flour and move the dough around as you roll it out, making sure it doesn’t stick to the counter and rip.
Next, prep a baking tray by lightly dusting it with cornmeal. Carefully transfer your calzone dough to the baking tray, then roll out a second piece of dough. One standard baking tray should fit two calzones.
When both pieces of rolled dough are on your baking tray, fill them however you like. Start by spreading sauce over half of the dough, making sure to leave about an inch of space (2 ½ centimeters) around the edge.
Then add your vegan cheese and any other toppings.
Carefully fold the calzone in half, trying to line up the top and bottom edges. Press the edges of the calzone together firmly. Then, fold this pressed edge over itself to seal everything together.
Brush the top of your calzone with some olive oil. This is optional but highly recommended (without oil, the dough won’t turn golden brown and will lack flavor).
Step 4: Bake and Serve
When your oven is preheated, bake the calzones on a center rack for about 10 minutes. They should be golden brown all over when done. A few darker spots may appear on the dough, and this is perfectly fine.
Remove from the oven and serve hot.
While the first two calzones bake, prep a second baking tray with cornmeal and assemble the next calzones so they’re ready for the oven as soon as the first ones come out!
If desired, serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Vegan Calzone Filling/ Topping Ideas
If you’re looking for other fun ideas for how to fill a calzone, you’ve come to the right place! There’s endless ways to create a customized calzone just the way you like.
Dairy Free Calzone Sauces
Starting with vegan sauces, you can try:
- Classic tomato/pizza sauce
- Pesto
- Vegan cheese sauce
- Caesar salad dressing (great for garlic-lovers)
- Barbecue sauce
- Creamy white/ bechamel sauce
- Buffalo sauce
Vegan Calzone Meat and Cheese
You can also mix-up the protein or cheese you select. Some ideas include:
- Vegan bacon bits (or sliced vegan bacon)
- Smoked tofu or tempeh
- Vegan ham
- Vegan pepperoni
- Vegan sausage
- Chickpeas or BBQ chickpeas
- BBQ jackfruit
- Cooked TVP (flavored however you like)
- Cooked soy curls/ soy chunks (flavored how you like)
- Any other type of vegan meat/ seitan
- Vegan parmesan cheese
- Vegan ricotta cheese
- Vegan goat cheese
- Any store-bought vegan cheese
Calzone Veggies and Fruits
As for other fillings, get creative with vegetables and even fruits, including:
- Artichoke hearts
- Olives
- Broccoli
- Banana peppers
- Roasted red peppers
- Grilled eggplant
- Grilled zucchini
- Portobello mushrooms
- Sliced bell pepper
- Pineapple
- Caramelized onions
- White or red onions
- Sun dried tomatoes
- Broccoli
- Chopped figs, apricots or other dry fruit
- Roasted garlic
Extra Seasonings
You can also add unique flavors from herbs, spices and sauces including:
- Basil (fresh or dry)
- Oregano (fresh or dry)
- Balsamic glaze
- Crushed red chili flakes
- Hot sauce
And lastly, why not dip your epic calzone into a tasty sauce?! Any of the sauce options above would work amazingly as a dip but you could also use hummus, homemade bean dip, or a tahini sauce/ dressing!
How to Store Leftovers and Reheat Calzones
If there’s leftover calzones, let them cool on a wire cooling rack. Once cool, refrigerate them in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Typically, I just reheat calzones in the microwave, which works but the crust stays soft. Ideally, reheat calzones in an oven set to 300 °F, and cook until warmed through. If the dough isn’t crisp once the center is warm, you can turn up the heat to help crisp the crust.
This also works the same way in a toaster oven.
I don’t have an air fryer, but these should work very well for reheating a calzone.
If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!
Vegan Calzones
Equipment
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
Ingredients
Vegan Calzone Dough
- 1 cup lukewarm water *
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar (or maple syrup)
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast (14 grams)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour (370 grams) + extra for rolling
Calzone Filling
- 1 can pizza sauce (about 1 cup/ 250 milliliters)
- 1 bag vegan cheese shreds (200 grams)
- additional fillings/ toppings (see list above)**
Calzone Assembly
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup corn meal
Instructions
Step 1: Make Calzone Dough
- Add lukewarm water and sugar to a large mixing bowl, then sprinkle yeast over top.1 cup lukewarm water, 2 teaspoons granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- Let this sit until the yeast is foamy, about 5-10 minutes.
- Then, add the olive oil and salt, followed by about 2 cups of all-purpose flour.1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- Stir until a ball of dough starts to form, then turn this out onto a floured surface to begin kneading.
- Knead the dough for a few minutes, adding flour as needed if it’s sticking to your hands. The dough should feel tacky but not stick to your hands when it’s ready.
- Lightly oil the mixing bowl and ball of dough. Let the dough rest in your mixing bowl, covered with a kitchen towel, for about 20 minutes.
Step 2: Prep Filling Ingredients
- While the dough rests, prepare all your filling ingredients.additional fillings/ toppings
Step 3: Assemble Calzones
- When ready to assemble, preheat the oven to 425 °F.
- Prep two baking trays by lightly coating them with cornmeal.¼ cup corn meal
- Cut the dough into four pieces (or more, for smaller calzones).
- Gently shape the first pieces of dough into a circle then place onto a well-floured surface and begin rolling it out. Move the dough around, rolling in all directions to keep it as circular as possible. Add extra flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking.
- Once rolled to your desired thickness (it can be as thin or thick as you like and will about double in thickness when cooked) carefully transfer the dough onto a baking tray, leaving room for a second calzone.
- Roll out the second piece of dough and transfer carefully to the baking tray as well.
- Fill the calzones, starting with pizza sauce then vegan cheese. Make sure to leave about 1 inch (2 ½ centimeters) of space around the edge.1 can pizza sauce, 1 bag vegan cheese shreds
- Once filled, carefully fold the calzone in half, trying to get the top and bottom edges to line up as best as possible.
- Firmly press the calzone edges together, then fold the edge in half, up over itself and press down again.
- Brush with olive oil (optional but dough won’t brown without).2 tablespoons olive oil
Step 4: Bake and Serve
- Bake the calzones on a center rack of the oven for 10 minutes, or until they’re golden brown all over.
- While the first two calzones bake, assemble the other two calzones on a second baking tray.
- Once baked, serve your calzones while they’re hot.
Video
Notes
**In the video/ photos, I use smoky tempeh (store-bought), sliced mushrooms and sliced green peppers. About 1 cup of filling ingredients is good for each calzone, but you can fill them more if you like. Nutrition analysis performed using only pizza sauce and cheese as calzone fillings. Any additional toppings like vegan meats or vegetables will impact the nutrient data. Accuracy of nutrition information cannot be guaranteed (certain ingredients may not have all nutrients listed in the database); amounts may vary (and will vary depending on brands of ingredients used); all nutrition fact values rounded to the nearest whole number.
Nutrition
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About Nicole Stevens
Nicole is a vegan Registered Dietitian (RD) and founder of Lettuce Veg Out.
She helps people thrive on a vegan diet with balanced recipes and easy-to-understand nutrition science.
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