If you love eggplant parmigiana, then you need the Best Eggplant Parmesan Pizza recipe for dinner. It’s insanely delicious, easy, meatless, and can even be made low-carb if you need it.
Eggplant is the black sheep of the vegetable family and I won’t have it any longer. It deserves way more love and I have been guilty of not giving it the respect it deserves. That ends today with the Best Eggplant Parmesan Pizza EVER that I’m so thoroughly obsessed with.
There are so many reasons why I love this eggplant pizza recipe, the main one being the BREADCRUMBS. Obviously, traditional eggplant parmesan is breaded and fried eggplant. Since we’re not about to do all of that just to throw it on some pizza dough. This deconstructed approach is much more efficient.
Instead of taking the time to bread your eggplant and fry it, we’re going to toast up some Italian panko breadcrumbs to sprinkle over the top. Genius and delicious if I may say.
While I have the platform. Let me just say that I hate the word eggplant and why can’t we call it aubergine like our European brethren? In my head, I’ll forever call this recipe the Best Aubergine Parmigiano Pizza and you can’t stop me.
Want to make this recipe low-carb and keto-friendly? Opt for a cauliflower crust and instead of breadcrumbs, get pork panko! Yes, that’s a thing and it’s just as tasty as it sounds. It’s basically ground-up pork rinds. If you want to forgo the crust altogether, you could try Low-Carb Eggplant Pizza from Eating Bird Food that uses eggplant planks as the crust!
Ingredients & Subs
- Eggplant — Standard eggplant or Japanese eggplant would be great, you just want to look for something on the small side. Japanese eggplant is slender and more vibrantly purple.
- Grated parmesan — Freshly grated or in a container or both fine. Maybe not the kind in a green shaker though 😉
- Italian panko breadcrumbs — I buy these at Kroger and they’re so great to have on hand! If you can only find plain panko, you can make your own by combining 1 cup panko bread crumbs, 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Store-bought or homemade pizza dough — I shall not judge you for your choice
- Pizza sauce — It’s rare that I tell you a certain brand that you need but I HIGHLY recommend Rao’s pizza sauce. It’s about $5 which can seem steep, but you’re still coming in way under what you’d spend eating out and you can get a couple of pizzas per jar. The flavor is that of an Italian grandma so it’s worth it.
- Whole milk mozzarella — Buy a block and shred it, please. I mean I won’t be there to scold if you buy pre-shredded but…..
- Roma tomato — Any tomato will work, obvs. I just like Roma for its size and wide availability.
- Basil — If you want to feel like you’re on vacation in Sicily, do it.
How to store
How amazing would it be to have a freezer full of your favorite homemade pizzas?! To do so, go ahead and prepare you’re pizza like you’re getting ready to put it in the oven, but don’t. Instead, double wrap the prepared pizzas in plastic wrap. Bonus points if you want to do that on a cardboard circle. Lay pizzas flat in the freezer and store for up to 2 months.
When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 500ºF. Place frozen pizza on a lined or greased pan or pizza stone and bake until crust is golden and cheese is melted for about 10 minutes.
You can also store cooked pizza in the fridge for up to 3 days. I like to reheat in a skillet to get the crust crispy again!
Hot Tip
Don’t be afraid of making your pizza dough from scratch! I love this basic recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction. The great thing about making your own is that you can make enough for several pizzas at a time and save them for a rainy day in the freezer.
If you don’t have the time to make your own dough, call your favorite pizzeria to see if they’ll sell you some of theirs! I love to get mine from a local Italian market and they literally sell them for like, $1.50. Totally worth it to support a local business and have the hard work done for you, in my opinion.
P.S. This recipe works great on the grill! I like to grill one side of my pizza until it’s got lovely grill marks, flip it, top it, and then turn the grill off and shut the lid to let it finish cooking. Soooo yum.
More Pizza Recipes You’ll Love!
Leek and Delicata Pizza with Burrata
Country Ham, Egg, and Kale Breakfast Pizza
Southwestern Chicken Naan Pizza
Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza with Dill Pickle Aoili
Grilled Peach and Prosciutto Flatbreads
I hope you enjoy this recipe! Take a browse around the site and please let me know if you make anything by leaving a comment and rating the recipe below. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions, concerns, or requests!
Best Eggplant Parmesan Pizza
If you love eggplant parmigiana, then you need the Best Eggplant Parmesan Pizza recipe in your life. It's insanely delicious, easy, meatless, and can even be made low-carb if you need it.
Ingredients
- 1 small or 1/2 a medium eggplant
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan (use any extra to top finished pizza)
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup Italian panko breadcrumbs
- 1 pkg store-bought or homemade pizza dough for one 10-12 inch pizza
- 1/2 cup pizza sauce ( I HIGHLY recommend Rao's and you can get a couple of pizzas per jar)
- 2 cups whole milk mozzarella, shredded
- 1 Roma tomato, thinly sliced
- fresh basil leaves, torn
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400ºF
- Remove the ends of the eggplant, then cut into 1/8″ slices. You'll want about 8-10 slices. Place the eggplant in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle a thin layer of grated Parmigiano cheese evenly over the top, season with salt and pepper. Bake until the eggplant has wilted slightly and the parmesan is very lightly browned about 10-15 minutes.
- While the eggplant is roasting, prepare the bread crumbs. Melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add Italian panko breadcrumbs and toast until golden brown and fragrant. Keep your eye on them and stir frequently to make sure they don't burn. Set aside.
- Assemble your pizza. Prepare your pizza dough per package directions. You want roughly a 10-12 inch circle and I like to use a greased 12-inch pizza pan. Scoop your pizza sauce onto the center of the pizza dough. Spread the sauce to the edges of the dough, leaving a bit around the edges for a crust. Sprinkle on about 2/3 of the mozzarella, then top with the tomatoes, eggplant, and breadcrumbs, evenly distributed. Finish with the rest of the mozzarella and a sprinkle of any leftover parmesan.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes until crust is golden brown. Top with fresh torn basil and serve.
Notes
See blog post above
ashok
Monday 11th of January 2021
Guys, Thanks For sharing this Great Recipe. My Family Loved it. I am definitely sharing this recipe and this website with my friend. Hope they also love it. Thank you again for sharing such a great recipe.