These keto calzones are stuffed to the gills with a cheesy spinach artichoke filling. They make a fabulous vegetarian side dish, appetizer, or even a light lunch!
Behold once again the versatility of fathead dough! It’s the perfect crust for keto pizza, it makes great keto bagels, and now you have before you some delicious keto calzones.
Pure magic, my friends. Alchemy. Turning the lowly shredded mozzarella cheese into the low carb comfort food we all find ourselves craving.
It’s truly a blessing to be able to indulge those cravings once in a while without knocking ourselves out of the game, is it not? To all the haters who say keto is restrictive, I present Exhibit A: buttery, delicious keto spinach artichoke calzones.
Nut-Free Fathead Dough
Most fathead dough recipes contain copious amounts of almond flour, which can makes it quite heavy and calorie dense. I also find that the standard recipe tends to spread quite a bit during baking. And of course, since it’s almonds, it’s not great for anyone with a nut allergy.
This keto calzone recipe uses a coconut flour based fathead dough, so it’s completely nut free. It’s the very same recipe that I developed for my chewy keto bagels, and I also used it in my keto cinnamon rolls.
Some readers worry that the coconut flavor will be overpowering but most people, me included, don’t find that to be the case. The cheese tends to negate that flavor. If you are worried, try adding some garlic powder to your dough, to help cover the taste even more.
Do be sure to choose a good coconut flour for this. I recommend using Bob’s Red Mill, but I’ve also had good luck with King Arther Flour.
How to make Keto Calzones
Don’t be intimidated! This is an easy recipe that results in a buttery, low carb calzone the whole family will love. A few tips for getting it right:
Squeeze out the spinach
You really want to release as much moisture as possible from the spinach. If too much moisture is left in the filling, it will make the crust soggy. It may also cause the crust to split at the bottom.
Make the filling
Prepare the filling before you start working on the crust, so that it’s ready to go right away. Fathead dough can toughen up a bit as it sits so you want to work quickly once it’s made.
Dust your work surface
I recommend using a silicone mat on your counter to roll out your dough. Make sure you dust it lightly with a bit more coconut flour, as it will help the dough release after rolling.
For this recipe, I split the dough in two so that I had two calzones. You could make one large one if you prefer.
Leave a border
You always want to leave a border around the edge of the dough, when spreading on the filling. I recommend at least ¾ to 1 inch. This allows you to pinch the edges of the dough together and seal in the filling.
Cut some slits
As with conventional calzones and filled pies, you want a few slits in the top to allow steam to escape. Again this helps to keep the crust from getting soggy.
Brush with butter
I found that brushing the crust with a little melted butter before baking made it become a beautiful golden brown. I also sprinkled a little sea salt on. So good!
Can you make keto calzones in advance?
Yes you can! They warm up quite nicely. Wrap them tightly and store them in the fridge, then let them come to room temperature and gently warm them in the oven.
I have not tried freezing this particular recipe but I have frozen others. That should work as well. Again, wrap them tightly and let them thaw completely before warming them.
Can you use other fillings?
Absolutely! There are many delicious ways to fill your keto calzones. There is a recipe for Sausage and Broccoli Calzones in my book, The Ultimate Guide to Keto Baking.
And I have a very old recipe with a different crust for low carb ham and cheese calzones. That would be delicious as well – be sure to use this crust for a better keto version!
More delicious keto spinach recipes
- Keto Stuffed Chicken
- Salmon Salad with Avocado and Spinach
- Creamy Chicken Skillet with Bacon, Spinach, and Feta
- Keto Spanakopita
- Spinach and Feta Lamb Sliders
- Easy Creamed Spinach with Bacon
Keto Calzone Recipe
Ingredients
Filling
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed
- ½ cup artichoke hearts chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoon heavy whipping cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Crust
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum
- 6 ounces shredded mozzarella
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- ¼ teaspoon flaked sea salt
Instructions
Filling
- In a large bowl, stir together the cream cheese, spinach, artichokes, and garlic until well combined. Add the egg, cream, salt, and pepper and mix well. Set aside.
Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread a silicone mat on a work surface and lightly dust with coconut flour.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, baking powder, and xanthan gum.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, place the mozzarella. Heat on high in 30 second increments until very melted and can easily be stirred together.
- Working quickly, add the flour, then add the egg. Use a rubber spatula to stir together and knead up against the sides of the bowl until cohesive.
- Turn the dough out onto the prepared work surface and divide evenly in two. Working with one half at a time, cover with parchment paper and roll out into a circle about 7 to 8 inches in diameter.
- Spread half of each circle with half of the filling, leaving a ¾ inch border. Use an offset spatula or sharp knife to loosen the uncovered half of the dough. Carefully fold over the filling, and pinch the seam together to seal. Place the calzones on the prepared baking sheet.
- Brush the tops of the calzones with the melted butter and sprinkle with the sea salt. Use a sharp knife to cut 3 slits into the tops of each.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until the calzones are golden brown and the tops are firm to the touch. Remove and let cool 15 minutes before serving.
Lisa says
I really want to make this along with your magic fathead dough pizza! I am just verifying, before I do so… I SHOULD NOT use full fat shredded mozzarella cheese?? I always have a ginormous bag of it for salads and recipes. Thanks so much! And there is never a day that goes by where I don’t eat one or two… sometimes three of your recipes! They are the best!
Carolyn says
You can try it but it’s greasier and will make the dough spread more… so you may want to add more coconut or almond flour.
Lisa says
Thank you so much!
bill h says
I have all the ingredients to try this…BUT my online order for the frozen smashed up spinach was replaced by…… fresh spinach! It’s a small bag, so not sure how much it represents in your recipe.
How can I do this using fresh spinach? What would you do to prep it? I am not a chef, and I am a learning cook, not a real cook 🙂
[I own your two cookbooks – sprial-bound – and they are great]
Carolyn says
Put it in a pan with a tablespoon of oil and a bit of salt, and cook it down until wilted. Then scoop it out, leaving any additional moisture behind in the pan.
bill h says
Thanks so much. I’ll do that.
Gina says
To make it an authentic calzone, you can substitute the cream cheese and heavy whipping cream out for a good quality whole milk ricotta. There Amy be a couple of more cars but it’s worth it. You can still use the spinach but not the artichoke.
Christin says
This turned out phenomenal! I did add cooked chicken and cooked it longer, I wanted very browned. Have ham and cheddar on my shopping list…..so many possibilities!
DimpledKitchen says
I was so excited to see this posted on Facebook; only to be disappointed that my coconut allergy has struck again.
I realize you chose coconut flour as the best option in your tests; but was there a second place flour?
Carolyn says
Not for this recipe, no. You can try fathead dough with just almond flour but it spreads like crazy.
Judy says
Wonderful recipe! I am so glad I discovered your website.
Do you think you could use this exact dough recipe to make a pizza?
Thanks in advance for your response.
Carolyn says
Yes, it will make two good-sized pizzas.
Tara says
Made as written and it was perfect.
Also used the crust for meat and cheese stromboli.
Thanks !
Kelly S says
These just did not work out for me. The filling was very runny and the dough was very dry and I couldn’t get the edges to seal. The flavor was phenomenal but couldn’t get it all to work together.
Carolyn says
So definitely sounds like some things went wrong. The filling should absolutely not be runny. The cream cheese alone makes it very thick so unless you didn’t drain your spinach, something went wrong or was mismeasured.
Jennifer GROSS says
Not an artichoke lover, so left them out. Used fresh spinach that I cooked first & then squeezed out the liquid.
Worked perfectly.
Thank you for your wonderful recipes that even non-keto hubby happily eats.
Michele says
Adding the egg to the warm melted cheese always confuses me. Doesn’t the egg cook? Don’t understand how to do this without the egg cooking while you mix. Tried it once and it was gross. Please help.
Carolyn says
So read the instructions and you will see that you first add the flour, then the egg, then you begin mixing immediately. The flour provides enough buffer for the egg not to cook. Try it, you will see! Your cheese should be completely melted but you don’t want it to be bubbling.
Debbie says
Do you think I could prepare and freeze before baking?
Carolyn says
I haven’t tried it but I think you could. Just thaw completely before baking.
Debbie says
It was perfect. Thawed completely as suggested. Thank you for another awesome recipe. I can honestly say I have never made one of your recipes that didn’t turn out perfectly.
Jana says
WINNER!!
Note to chefs: don’t skip the flaked salt – it’s the perfect addition!
Note to Carolyn: HOW is anyone supposed to wait 15 min to eat these …. and only eat 1/3 of one?
I like things HOT and it didn’t seem to “run’ or anything when I only waited 5 min.
They’re delicious! Hubby & I both agree!
Thanks so much!
Beth says
Oh my goodness! This calzone was so delicious and very easy to make! My daughter and hubby loved this for lunch today. I will definitely be making this again very soon!
Andrea Thueson says
I thought Calzones were off the table after switching to Keto, and now I can enjoy them again. This recipe is amazing!
Heidi says
Hi! I think this will be dinner tonight! Do I weigh the spinach before or after squeezing the water out?
Carolyn says
You weigh it out before you drain.
Linda says
Hi Carolyn,
Does the crust taste like coconut or does the cheese mask the coconut flavor?
Thanks!
Linda 😊
Carolyn says
Most people find it doesn’t taste at all like coconut.
Linda says
Thanks so much for the quick response!!
Liz says
This filling sounds crazy delicious!!! Perfect inside these delicious calzones!!
Lise Ode says
Anything with spinach and artichoke is my favorite. I love that you use coconut flour for this recipe. Can’t wait to try it!
Amy says
This is fabulous! I love anything you make!
Anne says
Carolyn!
I have always loved your recipes from day one! I can say that every recipe that I have tried has always been successfully created, with the support of the well explained ingredients and their unique characteristics as low carb, gluten free, sugar free or high protein, etc. Then the little “secret” ingredient that makes it all work, along with detailed steps, colourful pictures, your posts, and your divine ability to recreate a healthier version of our favourites! Mine is Chocolate (flavour wise), tiramisu (decadence without the sweetness, berries and cream (for fruity flavours). These Spinach and artichoke calzones have the flavour, the soft and crunchy textures of the filling and wraps, as well as that feeling of decadence by using artichokes and cream cheese as filling. Delicious!
Carolyn says
Thanks, Anne!
Selina Hoffart says
These sound amazing! For the artichoke hearts would you use the ones in a can or jar? If so do you have to squeeze the moisture out of them too?