It has been described as a turnover, it has been described as a folded pizza.
Though it has been described as many things, one thing remains constant with calzone, and that is its heart-warming taste.
A calzone can be loaded with all types of delicious ingredients, but, in general, it is filled with meat, cheese, and sauce.
Contained inside a doughy pocket of chewy goodness, these three ingredients are all a calzone ever needs to be perfect.
However, with ingredients like these in the mix, it was clear from the start that calzone was never going to be featured on a low-calorie diet any time soon.
Italians gave the world calzone over 200 years ago and we have eaten it up ever since.
Though it may not have the same name as its cousin, the pizza, calzone certainly hits all the same notes on flavor.
If you are presented with an entire calzone and finish it in one sitting you will be seriously full, without the need for dessert.
How many calories does it take to make you not think about food all day, full from a calzone?
This really does come down to the type of calzone you have cooked up. On the lighter side, a calzone can have as few as 1,000 calories.
If you go big and order/ make a large calzone with extra cheese and all the trimmings, they can easily clock in excess of 2,000 calories.
The suggested average daily women’s calorie intake is 2,000 to 2,200 calories, while for men it is 2,500. This means that putting away an entire calzone on your own maybe isn’t the best idea if you are watching your calorie intake.
Unless you aren’t planning to eat anything else for the rest of the day, which is far from recommended.
How Many Calories Are in a Ham Calzone?
If you decide to make a pepperoni calzone at home with the ingredient amounts below, you would be staring down a hefty amount of calories. 1.4 ounces of pizza dough, two ounces of goat’s cheese, two ounces of prosciutto, and two cups of mozzarella put together to make a calzone will equate to 2,400 calories.
A calzone of this size could be shared quite comfortably between four people to bring the calorie count down to a considered 600 calories per person.
If you give the calzone a healthy side salad that features no more than 400, you are looking at a very satisfying dinner idea for the whole family that doesn’t break the calorie bank.
How Many Calories Are in a Vegetarian Calzone?
Now we have some good news for all the vegetarians amongst us who are partial to a calzone.
A veggie calzone that features 14 ounces of pizza dough, baby spinach, mushrooms, ¼ cup pf whole milk ricotta, five tablespoons of parmesan, spices, and one and a half cups of fontina will have about 2,100 calories in it.
Yes, this is less than a ham calzone, but it is still not as low as it could be if you bravely choose to keep it trim on the cheese front.
A veggie calzone that has 10 ounces of pizza dough, spinach, spices, marinara sauce, one cup of part-skim ricotta, and one cup of mozzarella will come to a nice and even 1,600 calories for an entire calzone.
Sure, this may not fill you with the same cheesy feels as the other calzone’s features in this article, but at just 400 calories per serving, it has officially entered the low-calorie story.
How Do You Make Calzone Healthier?
Just because calzone isn’t naturally low in calories doesn’t mean you need to forget about it completely.
As the lighter veggie calzone has shown, there are still ways to enjoy calzone even when you are counting calories.
When you moderate what goes in your calzone and moderate your portion control, a special thing happens, and you can enjoy a serving of calzone, guilt-free.
One easy way to make calzone less calorific and healthier is to shop for lean meat when at the store.
Sure, lean chicken, turkey, or fish may not have quite the same authenticity as prosciutto ham, but if it means you can enjoy calzone on a diet, surely it is worth it?
Another idea is to source low-fat cheese for your calzone. It may not bring you the same irresistibly cheesy feeling as full-fat varieties, but low-fat cheese will greatly reduce the calories of a calzone.
Also, use less of it. Instead of loading your calzone up with an unspeakable amount of cheese, try to keep it contained.
Another easy thing to do that may not reduce calories but will 100% make your calzone healthier is to use whole-wheat dough to make it.
Whole wheat is easier for the body to process than white dough. This allows the body to take on more of the dough’s nutrients and turn its carbs into energy to fuel your day.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, the calzone that you can buy on just about every street corner of Naples won’t be low in calories.
Authentic calzone is not made to be healthy, it is made to be filling.
Classic Italian ingredients like ham, sauce, and cheese folded together between a crusty dough are as heavenly as they sound.
With a few minor adjustments, you can still enjoy this delicious creation known as a calzone without worrying about its calories.
