This was a first run for this recipe. I have never made this before. I figured out that it will take 45 minutes end to end to make this. Hubby loved it and I did, too.
One eggplant, I used the heirloom purple, find one that is deep purple with no blemishes. Since one eggplant will give you lots of slices, this recipe will feed many.
We used turkey pepperoni, shredded pizza cheese, and shredded Italian blend cheese.
I used homemade basil garlic pasta sauce. We had a tomato explosion over the summer and canned our own sauces.
Olive oil for brushing down the eggplant slices.
Kosher salt for salting the eggplant slices to give them a more firm texture.
Cookie sheet.
Oven at 350F.
Mandoline or V-slicer.
Seasoning.
Preheat oven to 350F.
Start out by rinsing the eggplant, then slicing off the bloom end and the stem end. I left the skin on mine since I wanted the extra stability for each slice. I used my v-slicer to slice the eggplant lengthwise. We have decided that it shouldn't be too thin or too thick.
Salt the eggplant and lay in a colander or on a cookie cooling rack with a cookie sheet below the rack to catch the water that will be released from the eggplant. Let this rest for about 8 minutes and then rinse the eggplant. Drain water, well. I use a colander to shake out the excess water.
Grab a cookie sheet and coat with baking spray. Place each slice onto cookie sheet. Pour olive oil into a small bowl and brush each slice with olive oil before placing into hot oven. Pre-bake slices for 7 minutes.
Remove from oven and brush again with olive oil. Spoon on the pasta sauce, then add your cheeses, the pepperoni, and more cheese on top. Place back in the oven for 15 minutes or longer, depending on how toasty you want your cheese.
Remove from oven and serve.
The eggplant is neutral in flavor enough to taste like pizza dough. I love the added crunch of the seeds.
Enjoy!
