The chicken parmesan calzone made its mark on my life in college. I went to Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH. Probably unbeknownst to anyone reading this outside of New England. Any current student or alumni will be able to speak of their legendary calzones and their forever-lasting memories.
The most unique element of this calzone is the pizza-like finish. It’s of course prepared like your typical half-moon-shaped calzone, but with a layer of mozzarella cheese and sauce covering the outer crust. It gives the exterior an unreal cheesy, crispy texture, just like chicken parmesan.
Ingredients
The chicken parm calzone must be simple. Crispy chicken (I use frozen Tyson chicken tenders but absolutely make your own if you’re ambitious), pizza sauce, shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheese, and melted butter for the crust. My calzone is folded into a perfect half-moon and baked until golden brown.
As a disclaimer, the chicken MUST be fully cooked before baking your calzone. You don’t want to risk undercooked chicken. It’s much easier to manage cook times this way.
Prepping and Folding Dough
Roll the pizza dough into your typical circular pizza crust, ensuring that the dough is not too thin. 1/4 inch thick is ideal. It’s okay if it’s a little thicker around the edges. Top one half with your toppings, and fold the other half over, pinching the ends where the two halves meet, creating a perfect half-moon shape.
The Final Cheese Topping
This is not called for in your typical calzone however it’s the essential final touch for chicken parmesan. Add a thin layer of sauce and fresh mozzarella cheese to the top of the crust, giving you a pizza ON TOP of your calzone. It sounds like it may be too much, but it’s the special touch that sets this calzone apart from the rest.
Slice into thin strips and serve. Perfect for sharing at your next football party.
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Chicken Parmesan Calzone Recipe
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
The only calzone recipe you’ll ever need—a chicken parm calzone filled with crispy chicken, Parmesan, and mozzarella cheeses.
Ingredients
- 16–20 ounces pizza dough
- 6–7 fully cooked crispy chicken tenders, sliced (I like Tyson Crispy Chicken Strips)
- 8 ounce bag shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 3/4 cup pizza sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- flour for dough
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 °F. If using frozen chicken tenders, cook them ahead of time according to the directions on the package. Slice into smaller strips and set aside.
- Meanwhile, roll out the dough into a 12 inch circle, like you would pizza crust.
- Choose one half, and spread 1/2 cup of pizza sauce over the dough, leaving a one inch border around the edge. Top the same half with 1 cup mozzarella cheese, all parmesan cheese, and chicken tenders.
- Fold the other half of the dough over the filling to the opposite edge, forming a half moon shape. Pinch the ends together to seal.
- Place calzone on a greased baking sheet and baste the top with melted butter. Use a knife to pierce three 1/2 inch slits in the top of the calzone. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the calzone from the oven and top evenly (again leaving a 1 inch crust around the edges) with 1/4 cup pizza sauce and about 1/2 a cup of mozzarella cheese. Bake for an additional 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, let cool for 5-7 minutes, and slice into strips for serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 335
- Sugar: 0.3g
- Sodium: 746mg
- Fat: 12.7g
- Saturated Fat: 5.1g
- Carbohydrates: 38.4g
- Fiber: 3.6g
- Protein: 20.3g
- Cholesterol: 34mg
Keywords: calzone recipe, chicken parmesan calzone
Made this tonight for supper and yum! I thought it was to much pizza sauce but I’m not a fan of tomato based sauces dear husband loved it. We did cut back on sauce. Great part was it was quick and eady.
I’m gonna be making this tomorrow , my husbands so excited 😅 – you said to make the dough 12 inches around, but how thick should it be?
I went to Saint Anselm too! I’ve been looking for a good calzone recipe, and seeing that you based yours off the ones at the c shop, I cannot wait to try this! Thank you for this recipe. Go hawks!
I have this in the oven right now. Was hungry for chicken parm, but had 2 bags of TJ pizza dough I needed to use as I bought a couple days ago. I also had chicken breast needing to be used, thus I made my chicken strips from scratch. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
★★★★★