To whet the appetitie in anticipation of our upcoming Pizza Pizza Pizza Cooking & Food Experience (click here for more details) enjoy our ‘5 days of Pizza’ blog series.
On the third day of Pizza, Back 2 Basics Traditions takes
One large eggplant
Four slices of prosciutto
Shaved slices of hard cheddar cheese
And a handful of black kalamata olives
To create our favourite Eggplant & Prosciutto Pizza.
Pizza Making according to the Italian Tourism website is an artisan tradition that was passed down from father to son. While its origins are often portrayed with much glamor and nostalgia, the book Inventing the Pizzeria: A History of Pizza Making in Naples portrays the life of a Pizzaiolo as a “risky, precarious business that few succeeded in” and where the art of pizza making was passed down more out of social and ecconomic necessity than tradition.
For us, pizza making was a tradition passed down by our Nonna. Famous to family and friends for her pizza dough (we share these secrets in our Pizza Cooking & Food Experience), she was always fond of topping her Pizza’s with vegetables from her garden along with some homemade cured meat. This was one of my favourite pizzas – garden fresh eggplant slices, prosciutto with black olives.
Buon Appetito.
Ingredients
- Eggplant slices, chargrilled or parboiled
- Hard Cheese, shaved
- Prosciutto, sliced
- Kalamata Olives, sliced
- Tomato Passata
- Oregano
- Minced fresh garlic or Garlic Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Sea Salt
Method
- Prepare eggplant – slice, place under salt and then grill or parboil.
- In a bowl, mix thick tomato passata with a small drizzle of Garlic Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil (use minced garlic if not available), salt and oregano.
- Shape pizza dough into a circle, or desired shape and place on a greased baking sheet or pizza pan. The pizza dough should be very thin.
- Spread a very thin layer of passata over the dough.
- Add layer of sliced eggplant.
- Add prosciutto and then olives.
- Shave cheese over top and drizzle with generous amount of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
- Place in a very hot oven and cook until the centre of the base is golden brown.
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