So I been thinkin'...

[hippywife]

about making an eggplant pizza crust. I'm thinking I would slice them in large, thinnish coins and either bake them, with or without a coating, spread out but overlapping on a pizza pan until they're maybe only partly to the texture I want and then top them with the pizza trimmings.

I guess I could also coat and fry them like I do for eggplant parm and it would be an eggplant parm pizza!

Anyone ever try this? How does everyone think this might be? I wonder if my husband will go for it? That last question could be the most important one. LOL

And I was thinking about this before I got sick so it didn't come out of the fever-driven delirium.

[Gormy Cuss]

1. Oven roast them

Cut them unpeeled into planks (lengthwise slices,) and place them on a greased baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper if you like. Roast them in a hot oven (400-425 degrees.) Turn once after ten minutes. Roast for about 15 minutes more, checking after every 5 minutes until they look done.

Here's a more formal recipe -- my head's a little foggy today too, LOL
http://www.ehow.com/how_2058670_roast-eggplant.html?ref=fuel&utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=ssp&utm_campaign=yssp_art

I use these roasted slices for eggplant stacks (tomato,mozzarella, basil,) for eggplant parm, and for moussaka so I don't know why it wouldn't be worth a shot to use them as pizza base.

[hippywife]

2. I really do want to try this

but husband's reactions went like this:

First: Doesn't sound very good to me.
Me: But it would be like having an eggplant parm pizza.
Second: It doesn't sound like pizza.
Me: But it would have all the pizza toppings just with eggplant as the crust.
Last: I'd eat it if you want to make it.

I dunno. :shrug:

But I do still want to try it.

[Gormy Cuss]

3. Don't call it pizza -- just make stacks

Layer as I wrote above, then throw the stack in the oven for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese. If he likes that, then each time you repeat it just push the eggplant closer together on the pan.:evilgrin:

[Arkansas Granny]

15. His last comment would seal the deal for me. It sounds very good to me

and it could turn out to be a family favorite. It really sounds like a version of Eggplant Parmesan.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

8. My Italian forefathers, and Julia Child,

are spinning in their graves over that recipe.

It's a good idea, and I understand the "healthfulness" of roasting the eggplant, but you miss the glorious flavor imparted to the flesh by the absorption of the olive oil. It makes a huge difference in the taste of any dish.

I can still see my Nonna standing at the stove, turning the slices, adding oil as needed. The smell, ah, how good it smelled! She threw a bit of chopped garlic in with her eggplant, and I got the browned chunks for myself, as snacks, with some eggplant, all lightly salted after they came out of the pan.

Now I'm really hungry, and heading for the market ---------------------------->

[Gormy Cuss]

9. I doubt that Julia Child is spinning in her grave over it.

The woman welcomed new ideas and new ways of cooking. Have you ever tried roasting eggplant planks? If not, I suggest that you give it a try before knocking it -- not as a substitute in your nonna's recipes but on its own.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

10. She was vehement on the subject of

roasted vegetables. I read a very funny interview with her in which she excoriated the idea. Thought it was one of the worst food fads ever to come along.

I've tried roasting all sorts of vegetables. I'll stay with potatoes and onions, and even carrots, but for other, more delicate items, I find steaming, sauteing, stir-frying, or, best of all, raw, to be a whole lot more toothsome.

Only a fool would find fault with something her or she hadn't tried. I am not a fool. Your assumption was quite off the mark.

[Gormy Cuss]

12. I assumed nothing about your experience. I asked a question.

I suggested that you try it if you had not because nothing in your post revealed that that you had -- only that your grandmother and Child wouldn't approve of it. I was skeptical of it myself until I saw the Cook's Illustrated team use the technique on their PBS show.

I would love to read that interview with Child however.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

13. It was a lovely interview.

She spoke about her affection for McDonald's, which was endearing, and, among other things, she deplored the new habit of roasting vegetables.

Why on earth anyone would think I hadn't tried it? How does one effectively formulate an opinion without the actual experience?

I've never cooked or tasted weasel, though, and yet I recognize it when I see it.

[Gormy Cuss]

14. Aw, that's so cute. n/t

[Warpy]

4. As long as you get the brown juice out first

You know, that horrible bitter stuff that Alton Brown described so aptly as cigarette butts in vinegar.

Once that's done, I'll eat eggplant any old way. Oiling it and baking it in a pizza pan and then putting pizza toppings on it sounds intriguing.

Just get the cigarette butts in vinegar out of it first. Bleh.

[hippywife]

5. I have never encountered

that flavor in an eggplant. I never soak them, just slice and cook. :shrug:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

6. I do it the way you do

It's about the age of the eggplant you're using. If they're old, they could be bitter. I've never had that happen.

My preference with eggplant is to saute thinly-sliced rounds in olive oil, letting them absorb as much oil as they need - oh, the flavor! - just barely salting them when they're done. I like them almost crispy.

Then, place them overlapping on top of the sauce, followed by the cheese and whatever other toppings you're using.

I did eggplant just yesterday, and barely managed to get it from the pan to the plate, because it was so good, I was snacking away. It was perfect.

[hippywife]

16. I absolutely love it

grilled. Marinated in olive oil, salt, and pepper and put out on the grill. That's when it almost doesn't make it to the dinner table. :9

When I make eggplant parm, I coat and fry them and do a lasagna-style casserole with the eggplant serving in place of the pasta with layers of shredded cheese, mushrooms, and gorgonzola. It comes out so incredible! I haven't done that in awhile because the husband will eat, and doesn't mind if I make it once in awhile, but not his favorite, which is just as well since it's a lot of work. But I do get to craving it sometimes.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

17. Oh, dear

At first, I said, "What?" And then I read your post again, and, yep, you wrote "gorgonzola." Now, that's a new one one me. I use mozzarella, Fontina, and Romano, but never Gorgonzola.

I make mine the same way as yours, although mushrooms are a sometimes thing. I do throw in some chunks of roasted onion and also a handful of roasted garlic, just as surprises. Now, the idea of Gorgonzola sounds just so good, I'm going to have to make another market run to get some more cheese - guess what kind......

It's a lot of work, but SO well worth it. Thanks for this.

[hippywife]

18. It's really just a little

in the middle layer with the other cheeses to give it a little kick...and it does. :9

[Warpy]

7. I'm a supertaster who doesn't smoke

I notice.

Ew.

[supernova]

11. "cigarette butts in vinegar"

:rofl: :rofl:

Yes, I know what he means by that.

Interestingly, momma got a recipe for eggplant "pizza" eons ago when she was in the weightloss program at Duke (not the residential program for the superheavy, just the daycamp version for regular patients).

I saved a bunch of those because they are good (like a good fake low-fat stroganoff sauce). I'll see if I still have it.