Cheesy Eggplant Pizza Food

CHEESY EGGPLANT PIZZA

Steps:

• Combine sun-dried tomatoes and 1/2 cup water in a bowl; soak for 1 hour. Drain and process tomatoes in a food processor until desired texture for sauce.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil a baking sheet.
• Whisk egg and 2 tablespoons water in a bowl. Dip eggplant rounds in egg mixture, then in bread crumbs to coat; place on the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through.
• While the eggplant is baking, melt butter in a frying pan over low heat. Add onions and cook until golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in molasses and remove from the heat.
• Remove eggplant from the oven. Spread sun-dried tomato sauce on eggplant rounds and sprinkle with basil. Top with goat cheese, mozzarella cheese, tomato slices, and caramelized onion.
• Return to the oven and bake for 10 to 15 more minutes.

EGGPLANT PIZZA

Steps:

• Broil eggplant:
• Cut eggplant into 1/3-inch-thick rounds and arrange in 1 layer on a foil-lined large baking sheet. Lightly brush both sides with oil and season with salt. Broil 2 to 3 inches from heat until golden brown and tender, 3 to 8 minutes on each side.
• Make dough:
• Dissolve yeast in warm water. Blend flour and salt in a food processor. Add oil and blend. With motor running, add yeast mixture all at once, blending until dough forms a ball. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface 5 minutes. Put in an oiled large bowl and turn to coat. Let rise, covered with plastic wrap, in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. While dough is rising, put a pizza stone on lowest rack of oven (remove other racks) and preheat oven to 500°F.
• Dust dough with flour on a floured surface, then shape and stretch into a 12- to 13-inch round. Sprinkle a baker's peel generously with flour and carefully transfer dough to it. Jerk peel; if dough sticks, lift it and sprinkle flour underneath.
• Assemble pizza:
• Toss together cheeses and sprinkle 1/4 over dough. Cover with eggplant, overlapping it, and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Heat oil in a small skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then cook garlic and red pepper, stirring, until just fragrant, 30 to 40 seconds. Spoon evenly over eggplant.
• Line up far edge of peel with far edge of stone and tilt peel, jerking it gently. When edge of pizza touches stone, quickly pull back peel to transfer to stone (do not move pizza) and bake until dough is crisp and browned, 12 to 15 minutes. Slide peel under pizza to remove from oven.

CHEESY EGGPLANT-CRUSTED PIZZA

Steps:

• Place pizza stone in oven. Preheat oven to 425°F (do not remove pizza stone while oven preheats).
• Place eggplant slices in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with paper towels.
• Sprinkle eggplant evenly with salt. Let stand 15 minutes.
• Pat eggplant slices dry, and arrange in an overlapping circular pattern on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Sprinkle eggplant evenly with 1 cup of the Parmesan, making sure Parmesan fills any space between slices.
• Transfer eggplant slices on parchment to preheated pizza stone.
• Bake in preheated oven until golden, about 15 minutes.
• Stir together oil and garlic in a small bowl; set aside.
• Carefully slide eggplant crust on parchment off pizza stone onto baking sheet.
• Place a second baking sheet on eggplant crust, and invert, releasing eggplant crust from parchment.
• Sprinkle eggplant crust evenly with remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan, making sure Parmesan fills any space between slices.
• Return eggplant crust to parchment, and place on pizza stone.
• Bake at 425°F until golden and slightly crispy, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Remove crust from oven, and increase oven temperature to 450°F.
• Lightly brush crust evenly with garlic oil.
• Top evenly with mozzarella and feta.
• Dollop teaspoonfuls of ricotta over pizza.
• Sprinkle pizza evenly with red pepper.
• Bake at 450°F until cheese is melted and lightly browned, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Top evenly with basil leaves.