EGGPLANT PIZZA WITH SICILIAN CRUST
SERVES 4
This was another really popular pie at Basille’s. But because it was so popular, we had to change the way we made the eggplant. We couldn’t fry it to order because it was a real busy restaurant and the kitchen was small. And we couldn’t fry it in advance and put it in the fridge because it would get all mushade and stick together like a mess. We figured out that when you egged it, breaded it, and baked it, you could keep it for a few hours and it wouldn’t get all messed up. We’d bang out a signature square Sicilian crust, put down some chopped mozzarella and two big ladles of Cooked Sauce (here), and pile on the eggplant. Then we added more sauce, some pecorino, more chopped mozzarella, and a layer of sliced fresh mozzarella on top so it would brown. It was like gettin’ a giant tray of eggplant parm. So friggin’ good. It’s also amazing when you have leftovers that you heat back up in the oven.
3 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
2 cups Dry Bread Crumbs (here)
1 eggplant, peeled and cut into ¼-inch-thick rounds
1 cup olive oil, plus more as needed
1 recipe Sicilian Dough (here), proofed and prepared
All-purpose flour, for dusting
3 cups Cooked Sauce (here)
½ pound whole-milk mozzarella, preferably Polly-O, cut or torn into 1-inch pieces
¼ cup grated pecorino, plus more as needed
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
In a medium bowl, beat together the eggs and milk. Place the bread crumbs in a separate shallow bowl.
Soak the eggplant slices in the egg mixture, then dredge them in the bread crumbs until well coated.
Coat a rimmed baking sheet with a thin layer of olive oil and spread the breaded eggplant rounds in one layer on the pan. Generously drizzle olive oil on top. Bake the eggplant for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the oven heat to 500°F.
Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. Gently stretch it, pressing down from the outside and working your way toward the middle. Try not to take all the air out of the dough. Once it’s flattened, place it in the prepared baking dish and gently pull it to fit the shape of the dish. Take a knife and poke as many holes as you can through the dough. (If it’s an aluminum roasting pan, make sure you don’t poke any holes through the pan!)
Brush some olive oil on the dough and spread ¼ cup of the tomato sauce on top. Bake for about 5 minutes, until the dough gets golden brown on top. Remove the pan from the oven and distribute the mozzarella as evenly as possible over the dough. Spread some sauce to cover the mozzarella. Cover that with the pecorino and eggplant, then add more sauce and mozzarella on top. Bake for 12 minutes more, or until the cheese is golden brown. Remove from the oven, top with additional pecorino, and serve hot.
