Calzone (UK: /kælˈtsoʊni,-neɪ/, US: /kælˈzoʊn,-zoʊneɪ,-ni/, Italian:[kalˈtsoːne]; pl.: calzoni; 'stocking' or 'trouser')[1] is an Italian oven-baked turnover, made with leavened dough.[2][3] It originated in Naples in the 18th century.[4] A typical calzone is made from salted bread dough, baked in an oven and stuffed with salami, prosciutto or vegetables, mozzarella, ricotta and Parmesanorpecorino cheese, as well as an egg.[4]
Different regional variations in or on a calzone can often include other ingredients that are normally associated with pizza toppings. The term usually applies to an oven-baked turnover rather than a fried pastry (i.e. panzerotti), although calzoni and panzerotti are often mistaken for each other.[5][6][7][8][9]
Stromboli, an Italian-American pizza turnover, is similar to calzone, and the two are sometimes confused.[10][11] Unlike strombolis, which are generally rolled or folded into a cylindrical or rectangular shape, calzoni are always folded into a crescent shape, and typically do not contain tomato sauce inside.[12]
Sandwich-sized calzoni are often sold at Italian lunch counters or by street vendors, because they are easy to eat while standing or walking.[13] Fried versions of the calzone are typically filled with tomato and mozzarella; these are made in Apulia and are called "panzerotti".[14]
InBasilicata, a variety of calzone is known as pastizzoru' pastizz 'rtunnar, which originated between the 18th and 19th century.[15] Pork (or, more rarely, goat meat), eggs and cheese are main ingredients for the filling.
The Sicilian cuddiruniorcudduruni pizza is distantly related to the calzone. This is a dish stuffed with onions (or sometimes other vegetables, such as potatoes or broccoli), anchovies, olives, cheese and mortadella; the rolled pizza dough is folded in two over the stuffing and the edges are sealed before the dish is fried.[citation needed]
InJewish cuisine, there is a dish called calsones (pronounced caltzones). It consists of pockets similar to ravioli, filled with tzfatit, a sheep's milk cheese locally made in Safed, Israel. This dish is believed to have originated with Jews from Italy and Spain during the post-Inquisition era. Migrating Jews brought it to Syria and eventually to Israel, where it is served in Safed and Tiberias during the Jewish festival of Shavuot.[16]
Media related to Calzone at Wikimedia Commons
