Vegan Sausage, Cheese & Spinach Calzone

Greetings!  Hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving.  We spent some time in Aspen, Colorado for the Women’s World Cup at the Aspen Winternational.  We got to see Mikaela Shiffrin win two slalom competitions – she rocks!!!  Here’s a clip of our journey…

And here’s some more Mikaela domination….

Now back to the food.  It’s December, so the holiday hosting has begun.  My Italian family loves calzones… I grew up with amazingly delicious spinach, eggplant and pepperoni calzones.  Here is my take on a vegan version that seriously delivers with flavor.  Calzones are the perfect party food – they can be made ahead of time and frozen, you can slice them into finger food, and everyone loves them!

Heat about 1 tsp olive oil in a skillet on medium.  Slice some vegan Italian sausage links (2 links per 1 calzone) and saute in the skillet until browned and slightly crispy.

While the sausage cooks, heat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a sheet pan with olive oil cooking spray.  Open the pizza dough and stretch out gently over the pan.  I used the Pillsbury whole grain version.

Partially bake the crust for 5-7 minutes, then take out of the oven and create the calzone. Spread 1/4 cup tomato sauce on the crust, then sprinkle on some oregano, garlic powder and red pepper flakes.  Next add the sausage, vegan mozzarella cheese and fresh spinach. Roll up the calzone then bake for another 7-10 minutes until golden (check on often to make sure the top or bottom is not burning).  Let rest for a few minutes, then slice and enjoy, or freeze until later!