This calzone isn’t such a far cry from my sausage and peppers calzone or from my meatball and spinach calzone but I think some of the best calzones are really the most successful. I like the mix of flavors and textures. Turkey meatballs have rent-controlled residence in my freezer and make a great calzone filling.

Not all turkey meatballs are created equal. Trader Joe’s has, hands down, the best ones out there. Perdue Turkey Meatballs are terrible…though this wouldn’t be the worst way to use ’em up. Cooked Perfect are pretty good. I’d definitely try Butterball’s turkey meatballs but I haven’t seen them in passing. I’ve made turkey meatballs myself but I think I like the ground chicken meatballs I’ve made better.

Ingredients:

pizza dough
6-8 turkey meatballs
1/2 green pepper
1/2 white onion
1 cup tomato sauce
8 oz shredded mozzarella

Directions:

Preheat the oven, and a pizza stone if using one, to 375 degrees.
Slice the meatballs into disks, the pepper into strips, and the onion into strips.
Saute the onions in a tsp of olive oil until tender, and starting to get translucent, about 4 minutes.
Add in the peppers, cook for another 5 minutes until everything is cooked through but still has some texture.

Spread the pizza dough onto the pizza stone or onto a baking sheet. Lay the dough out onto the pan off center, so you’re adding the fillings to what will be the bottom, and you’ll be folding over the top. You won’t be repositioning it on the pan again.
Add the fillings in layers: cheese, peppers & onions, meatball disks, and a drizzle of tomato sauce. Repeat the layers filling and adding what seems like over-filling.

Fold the top over across the filling. Pinch it closed, and slice some vents across the top.
Bake 20 minutes, then brush with eggwash or olive oil. Bake another 10 until golden brown.

Let sit 5 minutes before slicing. (I cut it too soon, and look what happens).

It was so good. I loved the tradtional-ish flavors. Sometimes I go for out-there flavors but that made me appreciate what works together. The turkey meatballs being fully cooked helped speed this along. I tried to be careful to cook the onions enough before adding the peppers so they could cook evenly.