Just when you thought pizza couldn’t get any better… enter pizza pockets (aka calzones)! There are LOVED in my household as a fun dinner or snack, and work great in the boys’ lunches. Skip the processed store bought ones and make them yourself. It’s easier than you think!
How to Make Homemade Pizza Pockets
- Dust your surface generously with semolina flour before starting (this is best to do on your pizza peel to make it easy to slide into the oven).
- Form a 6″ inch pizza round circular base with a ball of pizza dough (about a 1/3 cup – doesn’t have to be perfect!).
- Spread pizza sauce to over half of the circle, leaving the dough exposed along the edges.
- Layer your toppings on top of the sauce; don’t forget the cheese!
- Fold the side without filling overtop to form the pocket. Using your fingers gently press the dough together at the seams.
- Bake the same way you would your pizza – 500 F on a preheated pizza stone ideally until golden brown! About 8-10 minutes!
Freezing Homemade Pizza Pockets
Store-bought pizza pops are SO bland and come with a laundry list of ingredients, so these homemade ones are my preferred choice. I bake my pizza pockets and once cool, wrap and either refrigerate or freeze them individually. No need to plan too far ahead when you want to enjoy! You can pop these in a microwave for a couple of minutes or pop them in the oven to reheat.
Homemade Pizza Dough
Yes, you could probably get away with store-bought dough here – I just truthfully haven’t tried it! I rely on this recipe for pizza dough. This recipe will make 8-10 pizza pockets or around 6 small pizzas.
Perfect 2-hour Homemade Pizza Dough
Make this impressively easy 2 hour pizza dough for your next pizza party!
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups lukewarm water
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast or 1 x 8 oz packages
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 150 grams semolina flour 1 cup: plus extra for cooking*
- 550-800 grams all-purpose flour 4- 5 cups (use Tipo ’00 flour if you can)
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
-
In a large measuring cup, mix together the lukewarm water and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Sprinkle in the yeast and let it sit for approximately 5-10 minutes, until the yeast starts to ferment and bubble. Stir in the olive oil and set aside.
-
Place the semolina flour and 2 cups of the all-purpose flour along with the salt in a large bowl and whisk together. Create a well in the center.
-
Pour the wet mixture into the well and stir together with a fork or wooden spoon until it is well mixed. Transfer the dough to a well-floured clean surface and sprinkle extra flour on the dough.
-
Knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes, until the dough looks smooth and stretchy, adding extra flour as you knead to keep the dough from sticking to your hands and the surface. The dough should feel soft and stretchy when pulled (just slightly stiffer than my bread dough if you have made that).
-
Place the ball of dough in a large bowl greased with olive oil, dust the top of the dough with flour, cover with a clean dish towel, and place in a warm draft-free area for about 1-1 1/2 hours, until the dough has doubled in size. Punch the dough down. At this point you can either refrigerate the dough overnight (covered with plastic or beeswax wrap and occasionally punched down) or divide the dough into 4-8 portions (depending on how big you want your pizzas)and let the dough balls sit to relax while preheating your oven. If you have refrigerated your dough be sure to bring it to room temperature before you are ready to bake.
-
Once ready to bake, heat the oven to the highest heat setting (500 F for most ovens) and place a pizza stone in the oven for 20-30 minutes to pre-heat.
-
Using your hands, form and flatten each pizza crust on a flat surface dusted generously with semolina flour until it is nice and thin. It’s best to do this directly on a pizza peel (the paddle that they use in those fancy restaurants) to easily transfer to the hot stone. Top the pizza with the desired toppings.
-
Carefully transfer the pizza to the stone, and bake until the pizza is golden brown and the cheese bubbles, about 8-10 minutes. Cut and serve hot.
Recipe Notes
*you can, should you wish, skip the semolina flour and use just all-purpose flour
