PW's Eggplant and Tomato Pizza

Ohhhhhhh, Pioneer Woman. So, this is PW's favorite pizza. When I saw this, it sounded crazy enough, to be my potential favorite pizza. /I am just a wanna-be-Pioneer Woman.

Seriously...good stuff. Seriously. Not that you could expect anything less from P-dubs.

And I agree, this pizza crust got better. The first time we had it was one day after I made it (the strombolis). Now it has been three days. And I like it more. It is a thin crusty. Crispy.

I must confess that I did not trust the recipe when I read it. She does not use a pizza stone in this recipe. She has you stretch the dough out on a baking sheet. I wasn't going to do it. I thought I was too good to not use a pizza stone. But, about a minute before I needed to turn on the oven, I took the pizza stone out of the oven and put it away. That there shows you that I trust PW. And, it was excellent. And makes me feel good that I can mass produce homemade pizza on baking sheets one day.

This pizza is kind of like an eggplant parmesan pizza. I mean, I didn't realize until I tasted it. But it has all the same elements and flavors. But it works. It really works. I mean, it is really, really good.

We had this salad with the pizza. It is a simple salad with romaine lettuce, corn, garbanzo beans, red onion and parmesan chunks with a light dressing of olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper. We have had this before, and I remember really loving it. This time, I was less impressed. I think it is because last time I used fresh corn and picked a better garbanzo bean brand. I am picky about canned foods. Whoops. Here it is.

PW’s Eggplant and Tomato Pizza

by Pioneer Woman

FOR THE CRUST (MAKES TWO CRUSTS):

1 teaspoon Active Dry Or Instant Yeast

4 cups All-purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt

⅓ cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil

FOR THE PIZZA:

1 whole Large Eggplant (or Two Medium Eggplants)

Kosher Salt, For Sprinkling

1 pint Grape Tomatoes

2 cloves Garlic, Minced

8 ounces, weight Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Sliced Very Thin

1/2 cups Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

Extra Virgin Olive Oil For Drizzling

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

TO MAKE THE CRUST:

Sprinkle yeast over 1 1/2 cups warm (not lukewarm) water. In a mixer, combine flour and salt. With the mixer running on low speed (with paddle attachment), drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour. Next, pour in yeast/water mixture and mix until just combined.

Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in the fridge until you need it. ***It’s best to make the dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better.

TO MAKE THE PIZZA:

Preheat oven broiler.

Slice the eggplant thinly. Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and place into a strainer in the sink. Allow to sit for 20 to 30 minutes. Rinse eggplant lightly in cold water, then pat the slices dry between layers of paper towels.

Slice grape tomatoes in half lengthwise and toss into a bowl with minced garlic. Slice mozzarella very thinly.

Cut eggplant slices into fourths, and toss with olive oil. Arrange on a baking sheet and place 8 inches under the broiler. Broil for 3 minutes, then toss around and broil another 3 minutes. Remove pan from oven and add tomato/garlic mixture. Broil for 2 to 3 minutes, then remove and set aside. (May do this 1 hour in advance.)

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Drizzle olive oil on a large baking sheet and use fingers to coat thoroughly. Remove HALF the pizza dough from the bowl. Stretch pizza dough into a large rectangle, pressing with fingers to finish forming. Dough will be very thin.

Lightly drizzle a little olive oil on the dough and use fingers to spread. Lay mozzarella slices over the surface of the dough. Spread vegetables all over the surface of the cheese. Top with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly. Remove from pan and slice with a pizza cutter. Serve immediately!

(Servings: 6, Prep time: 30 min., Cook time: 25 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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