Name: Best Ever Keto Calzone
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 1.5 cup almond flour (150g); 2 tbsp coconut flour (16g); Good pinch of salt; 3/4 tsp xanthan gum; 1 large egg (+ 1 for egg wash); 2 tbsp olive oil; 1/2 cup ricotta (115g); 1/3 cup keto pizza sauce (80g ***see notes); 6 - 8 slices thin ham (100g); 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese shredded (60g)

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Change up the Friday night pizza routine with a keto calzone! This gluten free, low carb calzone is ready in just 30 minutes and it's so easy to whip up. We're talking a crispy almond flour pizza dough stuffed with all kinds of deliciousness that is simply... crazy good. Lots of flavour options in the post!

Calzones sliced in half, showing the filling of ham and cheese

We all love a good pizza here in the Sugar Free Londoner household. This easy low carb pizza with fathead dough is a regular, and recently I created an almond flour pizza crust which is just ah-may-zing with just about any topping. Check it out - it is getting tons of 5 star reviews.

I'm so happy that I have now added another Italian favourite to my repertoire with this Keto Calzone. It's like a pizza sandwich or hot pocket, with all the gooey cheese on the inside!

You're going to love how versatile and easy to make this recipe is. Simply fill it with any filling you like, from veggie to meat. All it needs is 15 minutes prep!

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Is calzone keto friendly
Ingredients
Instructions
Recipe tips
Variations
Filling ideas
Prep and Storage
More Italian recipes
Recipe

Is calzone keto friendly

The traditional Italian calzone is not keto friendly at all. This is because of the pizza dough, which is made with wheat. I checked how many carbs are in a regular calzone: according to carb manager, it is 42g net carbs!

In my version, I have used a simple almond flour dough that's not only low in carbs but also gluten free. Plus, it comes together in minutes.

keto calzones on parchment paper and topped with thyme

In terms of fillings, this low carb calzone has all the flavours of the authentic Italian version: it is stuffed with ham, ricotta and mozzarella.

I've also added my favourite homemade marinara sauce because in my book, pizza needs a tomato sauce. This is not strictly authentic, but highly recommended!

Ingredients

Many keto calzones are made with a fat head crust. This is a popular low carb dough that is made with shredded mozzarella, cream cheese, almond flour or coconut flour and egg.

Fat head dough is pretty ingenious, but I decided that there was already enough cheese in the recipe. Seriously, a fathead calzone would fill you up for days! I opted for an almond flour pastry instead.

Here are the ingredients needed:

ingredients to make this recipe, measured into bowls

Almond flour - I used ground blanched almonds, which are equivalent to regular almond flour in the US. Super fine almond flour will also work well.
Coconut flour
Xanthan gum - absolutely essential! Without it, the dough might crack.
Egg
Olive oil - I like extra virgin olive oil
Salt

I'm giving many ideas for calzone filling further down in the post. Here I used:

Ricotta - this is an Italian soft cheese
Shredded mozzarella
Prosciutto slices
Pizza sauce - marinara sauce is optional, but recommended.

Instructions

This section contains step-by-step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Let's get started with the fun! First, preheat the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

dry ingredients in a food processor bowl

Step 1: Place the dry ingredients in a food processor and pulse to combine.

Step 2: Add 1 egg and olive oil and pulse until a sticky batter. Don’t over-mix.

Tip: You can also use a bowl and an electric mixer.

rolling out the dough with a rolling pin

Step 3: Divide the dough into two and roll it out thinly between two sheets of parchment paper.

using a saucepan lid to cut a circle of dough

Step 4: Cut around a 19 centimeter saucepan lid. Then, use the ends to form the third circle.

filing the calzone with tomato, ham and cheese

Step 5: On one half of the dough, spread the ingredients starting with the pizza sauce, ham, ricotta and mozzarella cheese, leaving about ¾ inch from the edge.

Step 6: Fold over and crimp the edges.

3 calzones on a baking sheet before baking

Step 7: Brush with egg wash and optional seat salt flakes and dried oregano.

Step 8: Bake until golden brown. Serve with a generous drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle over fresh thyme leaves, oregano or basil.

Recipe tips

This recipe is forgiving. There are just two things that are non-negotiable:

Use the xanthan gum

Almond flour is gluten-free. That's why it is important to add xanthan gum as a binder so the dough is easy to roll out and does not crack.

Don't over-fill

Make sure you do not over-stuff the calzones so they stay intact. Also, be sure to seal the edges of the dough well so nothing spills out during baking.

Variations

Super quick pizza sauce

To save time, make a speedy no cook tomato sauce with ⅓ cup (80ml) thick tomato passata, 1 teaspoon minced garlic or ½ teaspoon garlic powder and 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs.

Or simply use 1 tablespoon double concentrated tomato puree per calzone.

Nut free crust

For a nut free version of the dough, replace the almond flour with a mix of sesame seed flour and sunflower seed flour. I would also add 1 teaspoon of psyllium husk powder.

Dairy free calzone

For a dairy-free version, use dairy free cheeses.

Filling ideas

There are so many possibilities for fillings! You could make a vegetarian keto calzone using one of the vegetable options below.

Or swap out the ham for Italian sausage, pepperoni, chicken or even chorizo!

courgettes / zucchini
spinach
red onions
mushrooms
peppers
chorizo
parma ham
Italian sausage
shredded chicken
olives
anchovies
goats cheese
pesto

Prep and Storage

Pre-cook vegetables: Important! If you're using vegetables in the filling, pre-cook them so they can release any liquid in advance. Simply pan-fry for a few minutes before adding them to the calzone.

Meal prep to save time: You can make the calzone dough ahead of time and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Storage: Low carb calzones can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

To reheat: Pre-heat the oven to 200C / 400F and bake for about 7 minutes or until the inside is hot and the dough has crisped up again. I prefer this method over reheating in the microwave.

Defrost frozen calzones before reheating.