Who needs a doughy crust? In this delicious eggplant pizza, roasted eggplant, tomato sauce, and melted cheese unite to create a wonderfully flavorful pizza-like experience.
There's no need to give up pizza on a low-carb diet! There are plenty of delicious alternatives, including cauliflower pizza crust and zucchini pizza. Eggplant pizza is one of my favorites because I love eggplant and find its unique flavor and meaty texture especially pleasing. Much like this eggplant casserole, this pizza is easy to make: simply bake the eggplant slices, top them with sauce and cheese, then briefly return them to the oven to melt the cheese.
Ingredients
See the recipe card for exact measurements. Here are my comments on some of the ingredients.
- Eggplant: It's best to use a large, firm eggplant. You want to be able to slice it into fairly big rounds.
- To season: Kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
- Pizza sauce: Try to use a brand with no added sugar, such as Rao's.
- Shredded cheese: I use shredded part-skim mozzarella.
- Toppings: Those are optional. As you can see in the photos on this page, I sometimes use pepperoni. Olives are also excellent.
Variations
- Add more seasonings to the eggplant rounds. Good options include dried oregano and dried thyme. You can add ½ teaspoon of either or both.
- Replace the mozzarella with another melty cheese, such as provolone.
- Sprinkle the finished pizza with red pepper flakes and/or grated parmesan.
- Use fresh basil leaves, as shown in the photo below. I LOVE this version - it's so flavorful! To do this, top the baked eggplant slices with pizza sauce. Place a large basil leaf on top of the sauce, and then add the cheese. Place in the oven to melt the cheese.
Instructions
The detailed instructions and step-by-step photos are included in the recipe card. Here's a quick overview.
Coat eggplant slices with olive oil and season them with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Roast them in a hot oven.
Top each eggplant slice with pizza sauce, cheese, and a topping if you wish.
Return the pan to the oven for a few minutes to melt the cheese. That's it! Your delicious pizza is ready.
Amazing - even without the pizza sauce.
Mindy
Read more comments
Amazing - even without the pizza sauce.Recipe Tips
- It's important to use high heat when roasting the eggplant slices. This ensures that excess water is removed and that they don't end up soggy. So, if you prefer to use parchment paper rather than foil, make sure it's marked as suitable for high-heat baking. And if you don't like using olive oil when cooking over high heat, use avocado oil.
- Salting an eggplant helps remove excess water. I do it in this roasted eggplant recipe. But since I bake the eggplant at high heat, there's no need to salt it first. The high-heat roasting removes any extra liquid.
- I don't peel the eggplant. Its skin is edible and very pretty! Some cooks feel that the skin has a slightly bitter taste, so they prefer to remove it. I find that the combination of oven-roasting and the flavors from the pizza toppings masks any bitterness.
- Storage: You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them gently in the microwave at 50% power. You can also enjoy them cold! They are a delicious hybrid between cold leftover pizza and Italian antipasti.
Serving Suggestions
These eggplant pizza bites make a great appetizer, snack, or side dish. But they are so filling and satisfying that I often serve them as a main course and pair them with a simple steamed veggie or a salad such as:
Recipe Card
Eggplant Pizza Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- Olive oil spray - extra-virgin
- 1 eggplant - large, unpeeled; 1 ¼ pounds
- ½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or ¼ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ cup pizza sauce
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese - part-skim, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with foil and spray it with extra-virgin olive oil.
- Slice the eggplant crosswise into ½-inch-thick rounds, yielding about 12 rounds. Place the eggplant rounds on the prepared baking sheet. Spray them with olive oil and sprinkle them with kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
- Bake the eggplant rounds for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, turn them over, spray with more olive oil, and bake for 10 more minutes, until golden brown.
- Remove the pan from the oven, but leave the oven on. With a spoon, spread pizza sauce on each eggplant round. Top with shredded cheese. At this point, you can add more toppings, such as pepperoni or olives.
- Return the pan to the oven. Bake just until the cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Let the pizza rounds rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- It's important to use high heat when roasting the eggplant slices. This ensures that excess water is removed and that they don't end up soggy. So, if you prefer to use parchment paper rather than foil, make sure it's marked as suitable for high-heat baking. And if you don't like using olive oil when cooking over high heat, use avocado oil.
- I don't peel the eggplant. Its skin is edible and very pretty! Some cooks feel that the skin has a slightly bitter taste, so they prefer to remove it. I find that the combination of oven-roasting and the flavors from the pizza toppings masks any bitterness.
- Storage: You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them gently in the microwave at 50% power. You can also enjoy them cold! They are a delicious hybrid between cold leftover pizza and Italian antipasti.
Nutrition per Serving
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Disclaimers
Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.
Mindy says
Amazing - even without the pizza sauce.
Vered DeLeeuw says
Good to know, Mindy!
Ken Thomsen says
Turned out really good we will have it again
Vered DeLeeuw says
Glad you liked it, Ken.
Shelley says
This recipe is perfect, made exactly as written. The first time i made it, i didn't peel the eggplant. The next time, i did peel it and prefer it this way. I use Organics brand pizza sauce, come in a smaller jar. Topped with sliced mozzarella and olives. Just an easy summer supper.
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm so glad you like this recipe, Shelley! Thank you for sharing your tips and preferences.
Amanda says
Delicious! I seasoned the eggplant with oregano and thyme in addition to garlic powder. Other than that, didn't change a thing. Adding this to the rotation for sure!
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Amanda! Thank you for sharing your delicious tweaks.