How to Make This Brilliant Summer Eggplant Tomato Pie
I am so tired of store bought, rotisserie chicken and a roasted veggie – our default, go-to, weekday meal. Needless to say, my husband and I have been on the hunt for new healthy recipes, that are relatively quick and easy. This Eggplant Tomato Pie hits all of those marks! Right now in the grocery store, with the beautiful summer vegetables and fresh herbs, the eggplant and tomatoes were by far the stars of store.
The eggplant tomato pie concept is extremely simple and highly customizable, as I riffed from this recipe. Tomatoes sandwich an eggplant mixture and act as a crust, the whole thing is topped with a little bit of cheese and a fresh herb, and baked.
In our experience, eggplant has proven to be a little bland, so don’t be shy with the seasoning. We left the recipe vague because vegetable flavor varies in different regions. (If in doubt, start with a 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.) We decided to follow the recipe and boil the eggplant for the sake of time, but you could easily roast it to bring out even more flavor.
Also, we sauteed the onions and garlic together, prior to adding them to the eggplant mixture, which was another departure from the recipe we found. Given the delicate eggplant flavor, we thought adding raw onion and garlic would be too powerful. Cooking the aromatics together, mellowed the flavor while adding some sweetness.
As I mentioned above, because it’s so simple, you can truly make this dish yours. For instance, you could use any number of cheeses separately or together (we used mozzarella instead of cheddar), use basil instead of parsley, use any variety of tomato or onion, etc. Alternatively, if you wanted to make this a vegan eggplant tomato pie, just nix the cheese altogether and I’m sure there are vegan breadcrumbs out there.
We also thought it better to add some parmesan to the eggplant mixture to add a combo punch of flavor and structure to the dish. We wanted to compensate for the all the moisture inherent in the veggies, and we nailed it.
Please make this dish and share it on Pinterest if you like it. How would you change this recipe to make it yours?
Summer Eggplant Tomato Pie
Stacey shares her recipe for simple and rustic Eggplant Tomato Pie. It's healthy, quick, easy and takes advantage of some great summer veggies.
Ingredients
- 1 large eggplant
- 6 Roma tomatoes, sliced into half-inch rounds
- 1 medium red onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon prepared pesto
- 4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
- Fresh chopped, flat-leafed, Italian parsley
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel and cube eggplant, and boil in salted water until soft, about 10 minutes.
- While eggplant is cooking, saute onions and garlic over medium heat until translucent and fragrant, being careful to not burn the garlic, then set aside.
- When eggplant is soft, drain water and mash. To eggplant mash, add sauteed onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, parmesan, egg, melted butter, pesto, and mix well.
- Lubricate the pie pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Layer on the bottom of the pan with tomato slices.
- Add eggplant mixture. Top mixture with the rest of the tomatoes.
- Add shredded mozzarella and sprinkle with the fresh parsley.
- Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 211Total Fat 11gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 49mgSodium 338mgCarbohydrates 21gFiber 4gSugar 6gProtein 8g
Eggplant Tomato Pie Recipe
Ingredients
1 large eggplant
6 Roma tomatoes, sliced into half-inch rounds
1 medium red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 egg
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon prepared pesto
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
Fresh chopped, flat-leafed, Italian parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Peel and cube eggplant, and boil in salted water until soft, about 10 minutes. While eggplant is cooking, saute onions and garlic over medium heat until translucent and fragrant, being careful to not burn the garlic, then set aside.
When eggplant is soft, drain water and mash. To eggplant mash, add sauteed onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, parmesan, egg, melted butter, pesto, and mix well.
Lubricate the pie pan with non-stick cooking spray. Layer on the bottom of the pan with tomato slices. Add eggplant mixture. Top mixture with the rest of the tomatoes. Add shredded mozzarella and sprinkle with the fresh parsley.
Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Just alright, always looking for outstanding! Why not? Good, but won’t make again.
It’s delish. We made 2 trays. 4 eggplants 1 container of pesto and improvised amounts on everything else
Baked eggplants. With Italian seasons and salt and pepper. Yes a bit bland. But that’s eggplant u can also use some sauce on side. We luved it.
I am in love with this recipe. I cooked it as above except I roasted the egg plant with seasoning, Tyme, rosemary, dried basil salt and pepper! I also added Italian parsley and basil. this is now my favorite recipe
I am so glad you liked it! Thanks for sharing.
I’ll use a pie crust for the base like my tomato onion pie
Do you happen to have the calorie info
This recipe is ok, but needs work. I found it to be a bit bland. Needs spicing up a bit. Will modify it and try again.
Please do post an update and tell us what you did to spice it up!
I am going to make this today, I thought adding dill and feta cheese would be a wonderful additional of flavor
Delicious quick and easy ! Will be making this dish often! Thanks
Oh good! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Can I just add fresh basil instead of pesto
I love this recipe! I was able to get most of the ingredients from my garden! Green and hot Hungarian peppers were added to the onion/garlic mixture to give it more heat! Easy and delicious! Another way to use the eggplant in my garden!!!
Oh yay! I’m so glad to hear you liked it! Thanks for sharing.
It was great, but agree that it need a little spicing up. It needs salt and pepper, I added salt while boiling the eggplant. Next time I’ll add red pepper flakes wile sautéing the onions and garlic and add Italian seasonings.
These are great suggestions!
I’m making this with BAKED EGGPLANT as a top and bottom crust, and with fresh basil, caramelized onions & garlic, with several cheeses. I don’t like the looks of the boiled mashed eggplant at all ! Sort of a cross between Southern Tomato Pie but with Baked eggplant!
This sounds great! can’t wait to hear how that turns out.
My attempt turned out watery and mushy— I won’t make this again.
I love this dish. I did a couple of steps different. I cubed the eggplant, tossed it with a little olive oil, a lot of basil and some garlic. Roasted it on a 425 degree oven on parchment paper for about 15 -20 minutes. I sautéed the onions and garlic in the butter( used less then 3 Tbls.) I salted the tomatoes and used 1/3 cup of Parmesan cheese. Pulsed it a few times in the food processor. Delish.
Your suggestions sound delish! Glad you liked it.
LOVE IT! After the first attempt, I used Italian breadcrumbs and a lot of store- bought pesto. Now, I wouldn’t change a thing.
Easy and delicious.
Angelo and Jane
So glad you found a way to love it!
This was really tasty. Great tastes and textures. I did roast rather than boil my eggplant and seasoned before roasting.
So glad you enjoyed it and I think roasting is a great idea!
I agree – it’s pretty wet. But the flavor is good. Maybe roasting the eggplant first would help. Also, the picture doesn’t reflect 4 oz of mozzarella. There’s a lot more cheese on the dish in the photo.
Mushy, bitter. Would roast the eggplant next time. Saved the meal by drizzle of basalmic. Very tasty. But still mushy.
A few other people suggested roasting it – I think that would help make it less mushy:)
Thoroughly enjoyed this eggplant dish. The only changes were I omitted the egg (accidentally ♀️) and used part Panko and part Italian bread crumbs. Absolutely delicious!
Good to know it works without egg 🙂 Glad you enjoyed it.
This is my first eggplant recipe I ever made. I took your suggestion and used the basil instead of parsley on top. I was gifted the tomatoes and basil. I roasted the eggplant in air fryer after boiling it for 10 minutes. Since I never made eggplant before I boiled again. Then I put in food processor. It was a good flavor with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
This was a great recipe to change up the same ole use of eggplant and to cut out some meat. We thought it was great the way you made it, just added some fresh basil and served with marinara sauce
I’ve made this twice now, it’s a big hit and has helped use up several garden tomatoes & eggplant. Going off of different reviews, I roasted the eggplant instead of boiled, added lots of minced garden herbs and added some dollops of ricotta cheese between the top layer of tomatoes. Also needed to bake about 15 minutes longer for a total of 45 minutes in a 9 inch deep glass pie pan. Fantastic!
I am making this …again. I usually make tomato pie with the tomatoes this time of year but, now we are empty nesters and it does not reheat well. I seasoned the eggplant cubes with Italian seasonings and garlic and roasted it in the air fryer. Then mashed it in the food processor with the rest to make the eggplant mousse. I didn’t have only romas so I sliced them and layered them on paper towels, salted them, more paper towels and cast iron to get some moisture out. It’s so good we had it for breakfast. It reheats incredibly well.
I’m so glad you enjoy it! Your tips sound awesome. Thanks for sharing!
Ok, this is delicious. I had some garden fresh tomatoes to use, slightly on the firm side, and had a small eggplant, so I found your recipe on Pinterest and thought I’d give it a try. I added a few mushrooms to the onion-garlic saute, plus a small chili pepper. OMG, even my carnivore husband said it was really good and he didn’t miss the meat! I loved it and look forward to making it again. Thank you!
I’m so glad you loved it and your additions sound perfect!
Loved making this…. I’m concerned that the eggplant is too “wet” I might cook it next time for like 20 min then add the cheese.. I said I might have added to much cheese but who ever says that! I also used a baking sheet instead of pan. Thought it crisp up but it didn’t. It’s delicious!
So glad you enjoyed it! Seems like roasting the eggplant in advance is a good way to go!
I got sick of making eggplant parm and wanted something to use up the last of the garden eggplant and tomatoes. I heavily salted the water when boiling the eggplant and I drained and squeezed out the excess water after mashing. I also salted and patted my tomatoes dry. Aside from that I followed the recipe. My family hates bland food and they all loved this. It was salty, fresh, and delicious. A great way to use and serve eggplant – especially for non-eggplant lovers!
I’m so glad you loved the recipe, and your tips for making sure it’s not mushy are spot-on!
I added basil instead and it was really good. Didn’t miss the “pesto”
I was looking for ways to use up my eggplant, tomato and some basil…this was perfect! I agree it needs a little something. But was a wonderful side dish to instant pot sticky chicken!!! Will make again.
Can you freeze this for later?
Hey there! I didn’t try freezing it so I’m not sure: generally I don’t think veggies reheat very well from the freezer but its worth a shot if you want to give it a try.
Hi Stacey, thanks for the recipe! I just finished making this and wanted to share what I did as well, since I use comments on recipe so much myself!
Firstly, I was looking for a new recipe to cook up my very first homegrown eggplant, and just happened to have some pesto on hand, as well as the panko and other fresh produce, so it seemed destined to be!
The changes I made were as follows:
1. My “panko” is actually made with finely ground pork rinds, so it was gluten free & low carb.
2. Instead of roasting or boiling the eggplant, I sautéed the onions for a while before adding the eggplant cubes to the pan, along with lots of garlic and a whole diced jalapeño, as well as the salt & pepper, which I was fairly liberal with.
3. After all that cooked down for a while, I added just about 1 tsp of Italian seasoning and a few dashes of cayenne (the spice level was still barely noticeable in the end) and then pureed the whole mixture with a food processor before adding the rest of the ingredients.
4. I used WAY more pesto! Like 3 Tbsp total, and the pesto I had on hand was made with beet greens, not basil at all (though I love regular pesto, this was also a new recipe for me) and it had a fascinating flavor that went really well with this dish!
5. I used my garden tomatoes, which were San Marzano & a small local heirloom variety, instead of Romas – since that’s what I had on hand, though I doubt that change made much difference really.
Anyway, sorry it’s such a long post, but I was really happy with the flavor that this dish had in the end, so wanted to share!
Next time I make this, I’ll likely do a large chop on the tomatoes instead of slices, just so it’s easier to serve!
Also, it may be that my mixture was overly plentiful in the end, as it came out like pudding texturally, so I’ll either spread it thinner or use a larger dish to help with that. All in all, it was very interesting and pleasant tasting – and far from bland!!
Thanks again for the inspiration!
Thank you so much for your feedback and tips! Very helpful and I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Great recipe and since I never cook with eggplant, I used your inspiration for my zucchini.
This is a great idea! Thanks for sharing.
I made this and it was delicious. I’m making on right now. I love tomatoes and eggplant. Thank you Stacey.
So glad you like it! Thank you for the comment!
I’ve made (& shared the recipe) several times & it’s always a big hit! I use a 9″x9″ pan instead of a pie pan, I find it easier to serve. I roasted the whole eggplant instead of boiling, added some garlic powder & Italian seasoning to the mix for added flavor.