These ground elk calzones are perfect for a pizza night at home! Buttery, flaky pizza crust filled with your favorite pizza flavors. A family favorite easy ground elk recipe!
Pizza nights are the best nights, but have you ever changed up your pizza night menu and included calzones? Calzones are my favorite because I LOVE the crust on pizza. So with a calzone, I get ALL THE CRUST with the cheesy pizza filling.
Trust me when I say these are really easy to make. Don’t be intimidated by the process. Feel free to adapt this recipe to whatever pizza “toppings,” or filling you want. You can also easily swap in ground venison if that’s what you have on hand.
Ingredients needed to make Ground Elk Calzones
- ¼ pound ground elk (or ground venison)
- ¼ pound ground sausage (elk sausage or venison sausage will also work)
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- ¼ cup diced yellow onion
- 1 green pepper, diced
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- 1 roll store-bought pizza dough
- ½ cup pizza sauce
- 12 pepperoni
- ½ cup sliced black olives
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Dried parsley, for garnish
How to make easy Ground Elk Calzones
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add the elk, sauce, diced onion, and green pepper. Season with salt and pepper and cook until meat is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pizza dough into a large rectangle, keeping it about ¼ inch thick.
- Cut out four 6-inch circles.
- On one half of each circle, spoon about 1 tablespoon of pizza sauce.
- Next, divide the pepperoni, meat and vegetable mixture, and black olives between the four dough circles on top of the sauce. Top each with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Carefully fold over the edges and crimp them together.
- Whisk the egg and one tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Using a basting brush, brush the egg wash over the top of each calzone. Cut ¼ inch slits into the top of each calzone. Sprinkle the tops with the grated Parmesan cheese.
- Transfer to a lined baking sheet and bake for 20-23 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven, let cool for 2-3 minutes and serve.
Recipes Notes and FAQs
Can I use ground venison or other wild game meat?
Yes! Ground venison will work in this recipe. I’m not familiar enough with other ground wild game meat, but if you’re comfortable, I say go for it! You might have to adjust the fat content in step 2.
Can I use different ingredients for the filling?
Yes! Feel free to add/omit any of the filling ingredients to what you prefer.
Can I use a homemade pizza crust recipe?
Yes! If you’re comfortable with your own pizza crust recipe, go for it! You may need to adjust baking times based on the thickness of your homemade crust.
Recommended kitchen tools for this recipe
Primal Pioneer participates in the Amazon affiliate program. Please see my affiliate disclaimer. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Check out these other ground elk and venison recipes!
Ground Elk Calzone Recipe
Ground Elk Calzone
These ground elk calzones are perfect for a pizza night at home! Buttery, flaky pizza crust filled with your favorite pizza flavors. A family favorite easy ground elk recipe!
Ingredients
- ¼ pound ground elk
- ¼ pound ground sausage
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- ¼ cup diced yellow onion
- 1 green pepper, diced
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- 1 roll store-bought pizza dough
- ½ cup pizza sauce
- 12 pepperoni
- ½ cup sliced black olives
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Dried parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add the elk, sauce, diced onion, and green pepper. Season with salt and pepper and cook until meat is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pizza dough into a large rectangle, keeping it about ¼ inch thick.
- Cut out four 6-inch circles.
- On one half of each circle, spoon about 1 tablespoon of pizza sauce.
- Next, divide the pepperoni, meat and vegetable mixture, and black olives between the four dough circles on top of the sauce. Top each with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Carefully fold over the edges and crimp them together.
- Whisk the egg and one tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Using a basting brush, brush the egg wash over the top of each calzone. Cut ¼ inch slits into the top of each calzone. Sprinkle the tops with the grated Parmesan cheese.
- Transfer to a lined baking sheet and bake for 20-23 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven, let cool for 2-3 minutes and serve.
Notes
- Swap in ground venison, if preferred.
- For the sausage, you can use pork, venison, or elk sausage
- Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 400Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 111mgSodium: 1219mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 2gSugar: 4gProtein: 23g
The recipes included on this website are written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist or medical professional, and the nutritional data on this site have not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist, registered dietician, or other medical professionals.
Primal Pioneer is a food blog and public land hunting resource by Mike and Jennifer Shreckengost. We’re a husband and wife team who combined their two passions – a love of the outdoors and food – into a joint effort with Primal Pioneer! You’ll find resources on planning and executing your own DIY over-the-counter public land big game hunt, along with wild game recipes featuring mostly venison and elk.
Leave a Reply