What to do with one small lonely eggplant? That was the question in my mind before I found this recipe. I don’t know of many recipes that feed four people, only call for one small eggplant, and still allow the eggplant to be the star of the dish. Of course I had to make something else for Mike (who doesn’t like eggplant or cheese – aaahhh!), but it worked out well since we have tons of leftover biryani. ;)
Eggplant Pizza (Adopted from Epicurious)
(Yield: 4 servings)
Pizza:
Dough (see below)
1 small eggplant (about ½ pound), thinly sliced into about ¼-inch rounds
3 small-medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch crushed chili flakes
Olive oil
6 oz provolone or mozzarella cheese, grated or thinly sliced
½ oz Parmesan, grated
¼ c chopped fresh parsley
Dough:
2 ¼ teaspoon fast-acting yeast
⅔ c warm water
1 ⅔ c all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 TB olive oil
A pizza stone (or a baking sheet to cook the pizza on)
For the dough: Dissolve the yeast in the water. In a food processor, combine the flour and salt, then pulse in the olive oil. Stream in the water/yeast mixture with the food processor on, until the dough forms a ball (you might need to add a little more flour so that the dough can take all the water/yeast mixture). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, then cover the dough and let it rise in a warm spot for about an hour until it’s doubled in size.
For the eggplant: Preheat the broiler. Arrange the sliced eggplant in a single layer on a baking sheet, then brush both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil for 3-8 minutes on each side, until the eggplant is tender and golden.
For the pizza: Arrange an oven rack in the lowest position and preheat the oven to 500F. In a small saucepan, heat 1 ½ TB olive oil over low heat with the garlic and chili flakes for 1-2 minutes until the garlic is fragrant and starting to turn color. Lightly dust a pizza stone with cornmeal. Use your hands to stretch out the dough, then place it on the pizza stone and spread it out to fit the size of the stone. Brush the dough with the garlic/chili oil. Spread on half of the provolone, then arrange the tomatoes and eggplant on top. Top the veggies with the other half of the provolone, then sprinkle the Parmesan and parsley on top. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the crust and cheese are light golden brown.
Carolyn Jung says
Eggplant and tomatoes always make magic together. Add a crisp crust, and you just can't go wrong.
Jen Cheung says
eggplant must be in these days! all i've been seeing from other food bloggers site is EGGPLANTS! :) love your homemade pizza. deliciousssss!!
have a nice day!
jen @ http://www.passion4food.ca
tasteofbeirut says
that is the kind of pizza I would not want to share anyway! Love it
Jeannie says
I love eggplants too, thus I would enjoy this pizza very much! Thanks for sharing! :D
Krista says
Ohhh, biryani! What a perfect pizza base. :-)
hobby baker says
Mmmm, that looks scrumptious!
nancy at good food matters says
Well, serendipity---I am making pizzas for a big potluck dinner tomorrow, with assorted veggies (and FIGS) from a friend's bountiful garden. Great looking recipe, Faith--Thanks! and thanks for visiting my blog today.
My best, Nancy
Nanny says
You won't believe this,,,,,I have one eggplant that I didn't know what to do with.....until now!
Thanks for stopping by, I am so glad to find your beautiful blog...oh that pizza looks delicious!
I love your header. Now I'm going to read your older posts...have a good day!
Monet says
I adore eggplant, and I think I adore pizza even more. This made me drool! I would love to serve this with a bottle of red wine.
Bridgett says
I've never thought to put eggplant on my pizza but this looks fabulous. I will be trying this out next time I make pizza. Great idea.
Mo says
I don't even like eggplant (so that I understand, Mike, but cheese?!) but this still looks amazing. :)
Diane says
Thanks for visiting my blog. This recipe is just perfect for me as I see I have two small aubergine on my plant in the garden. All the big ones have been used up:) Diane
5 Star Foodie says
Terrific idea! The pizza with eggplant sounds so yummy!
Lazaro says
I guess we both had pizza on the mind. Great job yours looks fantastic.
FOODESSA says
Faith...it's so funny how your Hubby doesn't like what mine devours ;o)
For myself...I'm a huge fan of de-bittered eggplant and of course cheese is my first love.
This pizza looks incredible...and the photos make it look even better ;o)
Brava Faith...success!
Ciao for now,
Claudia
kim says
i love how you made the dough from scratch! And I adore eggplant as well. It's such an understated vegetable.
coco says
I love topping eggplants to pizza... it has an unique taste and only gets out when cooked with high temperature! :)
grace says
ah, great decision! pizza pleases almost everyone, and i love how the circles of tomato and eggplant look atop that tasty crust. brilliant. :)
pigpigscorner says
eggplant goes with anything!yummy!
Mimi says
Such perfect timing. I pick my first eggplant from the garden and it is very small. Now I know what to do with it.Thanks!
Mimi
Betty @ scrambled hen fruit says
This pizza is gorgeous! Great way to use your eggplant. :)
Duckie says
love eggplant! n of coz pizza too! good combination =)
Anna Johnston says
I adore eggplant & because no one else in my house is a great lover of these little morsels I always seem to stretch a bit wondering how to use it. You've made my day..., this is seriously what I'm having for dinner tonight....
Thanks Faith
Anna
Veronica M. says
Looks divine! I don't like eggplant but the only time I've ever enjoyed it was on a pizza so I know I'd like this. I have a picky hubby too and on days I feel like making something like this or anything with shrimp on/in it, he gets a big grilled steak. :)
BeadedTail says
We've never had eggplant because we didn't know what to make with it so eggplant pizza sounds like the perfect way to try it out! Yum!
Nicole, RD says
Seriously, I don't know which looks better...the crust or the eggplant! YUM!
Jessie says
I can't believe Mike doesn't like cheese OR eggplant, because this pizza is mouth-watering! Pizzas are great ways to highlight ingredients without having to use a lot of them. Great recipe, Faith!
sophia says
Mmm! I love eggplant, on pizza or just grilled by itself. I like that you used fresh tomatoes instead of the basic tomato sauce.
Emily says
Oh man this looks so good. I admit, I have never actually tried to make my own pizza. I have it in my head that it is probably harder than it really is. But this, with the eggplant looks fantastic. I love eggplant. Matthew doesn't mind it occasionally, but in small doses. ;)
Joanne says
I have been CRAVING pizza lately and eating eggplant like there's no tomorrow. Do I need to make this? Hell yeah.
Reeni says
This is crave worthy Faith! I love eggplant on my pizza. If you need help eating it I'm always available...
Katerina says
I simply love pizza. I have never used eggplant on it. You gave me a great idea. Thanks!
ummz says
This looks sooo good. I just put together an eggplant parmesan for iftar. I will be saving this for later!
Fitness Surfer says
I'm still acquiring the taste for eggplant. I'm sure I'm preparing it wrong, and i should try this recipe. A roommate in college (vegetarian) once made me eggplant lasagna, and i liked that.
Jen says
Eggplant and pizza - perfect together! I am now craving this pizza!
Maria @ ScandiFoodie says
I'm always looking for new eggplant recipes, and this definitely sounds like something I should try!
deana@lostpastremembered says
You make the lowly eggplant look like a star... great idea. Wasting food is criminal... being smart about using it... brilliant!!!!
Blond Duck says
I wish it wasn't so blistering hot so I could eat this.
Dana says
This looks so good! I love eggplant (and pizza, but who doesn't??). Yum!
Swathi says
Faith,
Eggplant pizza looks delicious, i got one more recipe to use my favorite eggplant.
Louanne says
That looks so good! Wish I had a piece right now (even it's only 9:40am)
Ameena says
As I'm sure you could understand, I could literally inhale that entire pizza right now. I realize that isn't a very Ramadan-like thing to say but it had to be said.
Great recipe, fantastic use of the eggplant Faith!
marla {family fresh cooking} says
Faith, this is one of the most GORGEOUS pizzas I have ever seen. I want to dive into these photos. It looks so fresh and healthy. I am not usually a fan of eggplant, but I would enjoy it in this recipe for sure! xo
Anh says
eggplant pizza! yummm! I love the idea!
Alessandra says
I love pizza and this one looks great!
Brava!!!
Heavenly Housewife says
This looks amazing. Where my mom lives in FL there is this great pizza place that makes an eggplant pizza. First they bread the eggplant and fry it, then it goes on the pizza, and let me tell you, it is a slice of heaven :)
*kisses* HH
Honey @ honeyandsoy says
Mmmmmm that crust looks soooo good!
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says
That's a real challenge isn't it finding recipes for one unit ingredients! I had two potatoes left over and I didn't know what to do with them. Great idea! :D