This keto spinach calzone recipe is loaded with cheese, incredible flavor, and of course, lots of spinach. It is low-carb, gluten-free, kid-friendly, vegetarian, and takes less than an hour to make. And trust me, this keto calzone tastes even better than the real thing.
This calzone recipe can make for a fun and easy breakfast, lunch, or dinner. If you've never tried calzone before, then think of it as a stuffed pizza pocket loaded with spinach and cream cheese. The traditional calzone has lots of carbs, so I had to come up with a keto-friendly alternative. It was a complete failure the first few times I tried to make it, but I finally made the perfect low-carb dough for the calzone.
Fortunately, you can make extra calzones and stash them in your freezer for a tasty meal option that’ll always be ready when you need it. Also, these low-carb calzones reheat perfectly, making them ideal for a packed lunch to bring to work or school.
Table of Contents
How to Make Keto Calzone Dough
I like to make most of my low-carb dough out of mozzarella cheese. For this recipe, I also used mozzarella dough. So, here are the ingredients that you’ll need to make the keto calzones:
- Mozzarella cheese. You’ll need to get the usual low-moisture shredded mozzarella cheese. If you use fresh mozzarella, the dough recipe won’t work as it should.
- Almond flour. Many use coconut flour instead, but I think that almond flour in this dough results in a better texture.
- Baking powder. This ingredient is essential here since it lightens the texture of the calzone and will make the dough rise when baking.
- Egg. It is supposed to serve as a leavening agent in this recipe and should help to tenderize the crumb.
- Xantham gum. If this is not your first keto dough recipe, then you must already be familiar with xantham gum. It is an important ingredient here since it works as a suspending and stabilizing agent.
- Salt. Just a pinch of salt should be perfect for this dough.
That’s all! With these six simple ingredients, you’re going to excel in making this keto calzone dough. It will turn out as close to the traditional calzone dough as possible…or even better.
How to Make the Calzone Filling
From the recipe’s name, you must have already figured out that the key ingredients used for the filling of this calzone are spinach and cream cheese.
Aside from the main ingredients, you’ll need some olive oil to fry the spinach before adding it into the calzone. You’ll also need an egg to keep everything together, and of course, since spinach goes perfectly with garlic, you’ll need some for this filling too.
When choosing the seasonings that should go with the calzone filling, I decided to settle with something simple. So, I only added onion powder, salt, and pepper.
For this low-carb calzone filling, all you’ll need to do is first chop the spinach, fry it until the excess moisture evaporates, then mix it in a bowl with the cream cheese, egg, minced garlic, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
After you’ve prepared the calzone filling, you can finally start to assemble your calzones. It’s also a quite simple process: roll a circle from the dough, place the filling on one half, fold the other side over the filling, and seal the calzone. Head to the recipe card for step-by-step instructions.
Storing and Freezing Tips
You can keep the keto calzone leftovers in your fridge for up to 3 days. When you wish to serve them, simply reheat them in the microwave for a few minutes, and they’ll taste as if they came straight from the oven.
What I like the most about this recipe is that it is freezer-friendly. You can freeze these calzones, either baked or raw. But, I actually prefer the second option.
All you’ll need to do is lay a baking sheet on a tray and place the calzones on it arranged in a single layer. Then, place the tray in the freezer and allow the calzones to completely freeze. After that, you can store them in a freezer-safe plastic zipper bag for up to 3 months, but I doubt you’ll be able to resist eating these calzones for that long.
Serving Options
Wondering what side dish could go well with calzone? A salad with some lettuce, fresh veggies, and a light dressing should be the ideal option in this case. Or, you can make some low-carb guacamole to dip the calzone in.
Also, since there is no meat in this recipe, you can always go with some beef and broccoli stir fry on the side.
Recipe
Keto Spinach and Cream Cheese Calzone
Ingredients
Crust:
- 4 oz mozzarella cheese shredded
- 5 tbsp almond flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 large egg
- ⅛ tsp xantham gum
- salt to taste
Filling:
- 2 cups fresh spinach chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 oz cream cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 tsp onion powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Filling:
- Place a skillet over medium heat and pour in the olive oil. Add the chopped spinach and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the spinach turns bright green and the excess moisture evaporates, remove it from the skillet.
- In a medium bowl, combine the cooked spinach, cream cheese, minced garlic, egg, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
Dough:
- Put the shredded mozzarella cheese in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave it on high for 30 seconds. Then remove the bowl, stir the mozzarella, and send it back into the microwave for 30 more seconds.
- Add the egg, almond flour, baking powder, xantham gum, and some salt into the bowl with melted cheese. Then, use a spatula to mix everything together. If the dough isn’t of smooth consistency, knead it by hand for a few minutes.
Baking:
- Preheat the oven to 400 F and line a baking tray with a piece of parchment paper. Spray it with some cooking oil.
- Divide the dough into two parts. Roll the dough into a circle, place the spinach filling on one half, and fold the other half over it. Use a fork to secure the edges. Cut a few lines in the top to allow steam to release during baking. Repeat with the other part of the dough. You should get two calzones.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the calzones are golden brown. Let them cool for 10 more minutes before serving.
Vikram Mills
Looks tasty which flour is used to make this recipe
Romana
Thanks Vikram, we used almond flour for this recipe