I saw these calzones on my pal Chelle’s blog not too long ago, and I could not stop thinking about them.  Then, it just so happened that I had half a batch of pizza sauce in the refrigerator and a batch of pizza dough in the freezer.  In other words, I had no good reason not to make them!  It was no surprise that these did not disappoint.  Basically just a classic supreme pizza rolled up in calzone form, these are a fantastic meal.  I opted to sauté the veggies briefly before adding them to the filling so that they would be more tender after baking.  Also, I used turkey sausage and while usually I am a big fan of subbing turkey products where possible, I really wish I had used real Italian sausage because the turkey did not quite cut it for me.  I should mention that we ended up with a small amount of filling left over, but Ben considered it a great snack the next day so we didn’t mind.  I am already looking forward to making them again with real sausage – this one is a keeper!

Italian Supreme Calzones
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Ingredients:
½ batch perfect pizza crust
2 links Italian sausage, removed from casings
½ medium yellow onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
4 oz. sliced mushrooms, chopped
Sliced black olives
Red pepper flakes
10 slices pepperoni, chopped
Shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tbsp. water for egg wash
Pizza sauce, for serving

Directions: 
Preheat the oven to 500° F.  Place a pizza stone in the oven and let it heat for at least 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, divide pizza dough in half on a lightly floured work surface and roll out into two rounds approximately 7-8 inches in diameter.  Transfer to a piece of parchment paper about the size of your pizza stone.  

In a skillet over medium-high heat, crumble the sausage and cook until browned.  Transfer to a medium bowl.  Return the skillet to the heat and add the chopped onion and green pepper.  Sauté briefly, about 3 minutes.  Mix in the slices mushrooms and sauté a few minutes more.  Transfer the veggie mixture to the bowl with the sausage.  Toss in sliced black olives and red pepper flakes to taste.  Mix in the chopped pepperoni.  

Sprinkle one half of each dough round with a small amount of shredded mozzarella, leaving a thin border around the edge.   Divide the meat and veggie mixture between the two dough rounds, on top of the mozzarella.  Top with more mozzarella cheese, to taste.  Fold over the remaining dough on top of the cheese and filling, pinching the free edges of dough together to seal.  Brush the tops of the calzones with egg wash, transfer to the heated pizza stone and bake until browned, about 12-15 minutes.  Serve with pizza sauce for dipping.  

Source: inspired by Brown Eyed Baker