BEC on Sesame

Bacon, egg, and cheese, deli order, pizza format. American cheese, runny yolks, and a sesame crust.

Time: 8 min | Yield: 1 pizzas | Difficulty: Intermediate | Serves: 3 | Published: 2026-07-24

The New York deli BEC, translated to a pizza. Bacon, eggs cracked right on the pie, and, critically, American cheese, because a BEC without American is a different sandwich.

The crust is doing deli-roll cosplay: oiled and coated in sesame seeds (or Everything but Bagel seasoning, both sanctioned). Brush carefully, oil on the peel is a launch disaster. The mozzarella splits into two layers, half under the American and bacon, half over, so everything is laminated in cheese.

The eggs are the timing game: crack them on and bake 8 minutes for set-but-soft, or par-bake the pie 3 minutes first and then add the eggs if you want them extra runny. Chives, Reggiano, done. Weekend breakfast has a new format.

Ingredients

• 1 cup shredded whole milk mozzarella
• 6 slices of American cheese
• 4 - 5 medium eggs
• 6 slices of bacon (chopped)
• salt
• pepper
• sesame seeds
• olive oil
• chopped chives or green onions

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 500-550 degrees (as hot as it can go) on the convection setting with your steel or stone on the middle rack. For about an hour.
2. Fry and chop your bacon while the oven pre heats.
3. Stretch your dough to 14-16 inches.
4. Drizzle olive oil around the crust and brush it evenly. Avoid letting the oil get on the peel or it could cause issues when launching.
   You'll know it's right: Brush the oil to the crust edge but keep it off the peel, oiled peels grab dough at launch.
5. Sprinkle your sesame seeds (or Everything but Bagel Seasoning) evenly around the crust. And I like adding a little in the middle as well.
   You'll know it's right: Seeds stick to the oiled rim only, a light pass inside the rim adds crunch to the first bite.
6. Evenly sprinkle half of your mozzarella. It won't feel like much.
   You'll know it's right: Half the mozz now, it looks sparse, the second half comes after the bacon.
7. Evenly distribute your American cheese.
8. Sprinkle on your chopped bacon.
9. Add the other half of your mozzarella on top.
10. Crack your eggs on the pizza. If you want them even more runny, you have the option to bake the pizza for 3 minutes, pull out the pizza, then add your eggs then, and finish baking.
    You'll know it's right: For jammy-runny yolks, use the 3-minute par-bake option before the eggs go on. Straight 8 minutes gives fully set whites and soft-set yolks.
11. Bake for about 8 minutes
12. Rest on a cooling rack for two minutes before slicing.
    You'll know it's right: Two-minute rack rest lets the whites finish and the yolks stay liquid gold for the slice.
13. Add your chopped chives or scallions. Finish with Reggiano and Enjoy!

Troubleshooting

Yolks were hard

Full bake with eggs on from the start and a hot oven. Use the par-bake option: 3 minutes, then eggs, then finish. Runny is a timing choice.

Eggs slid around at launch

Cracked on before launching. Launch confidence matters, quick and level. Or crack the eggs after a short par-bake when the surface has set.

The pie stuck to the peel

Oil crept under the dough. Brush inward from the rim and keep the peel dry. Semolina insurance never hurts.

American cheese disappeared

Buried under everything. The layering order matters: mozz, American, bacon, mozz. The American melts INTO the stack, that's the BEC flavor.

Soggy center

Five eggs on a thin stretch. Four eggs for a 14-inch, five only on a 16. Keep them spaced toward the middle third.

Nutrition (2 slices (1/4 of the pie)): 430 calories, 23g protein, 35g carbs, 22g fat.