Pesto Calzone Braid

Oh my gosh, this is soooo good. My pictures show my messiness but probably don't show how delicious the calzone is. (The braid also looks so impressive!) Again, I don't have a nice serving dish to take a pretty picture, but I could take a picture of the empty pan and few crumbs left, since Biz and I ate the whole thing in one sitting. In the recipe I got from Plain Chicken, she used chicken as the main filling (besides cheese, tomato sauce, and pesto), but we added pepperoni, green bell pepper, and mushrooms. So delicious! We'll definitely make this again!

As you can see in the pictures, the dough got a little sticky when I was trying to cut it and cross the strips. That's because it was hotter than the sun in the house; we turned the AC off in the house since we went out of town, and it was still easily 80 degrees in the house.

Pesto Calzone Braid


1 can crescent rolls
1 1/2 cups cooked chicken, chopped (I used one chicken breast)
1/3 cup pesto
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
(we added pepperoni and 1/4 green bell pepper, chopped)


Preheat oven to 375. Line baking sheet with parchment paper (or in my case, foil).


Finely chop chicken. In a large bowl, mix chicken, pesto, ricotta, garlic, tomato paste, parmesan, and mozzarella. Mix all until well combined.


Unroll crescent roll dough, and arrange flat on a baking sheet, pinching the seams together to form a single sheet of dough. Using scissors or a knife, cut one-inch strips in toward the center, starting from the long sides. There should be a solid strip, about three inches wide, down the center, with the cut strips forming a fringe down each side.


Spread the chicken mixture down the center strip. Fold the side strips across the chicken mixture, alternating sides. Pinch or twist to seal. Bake at 375 for 25-28 minutes or until golden brown.