Socca
Socca topped with cashew ricotta and browned mushrooms (recipe below)
This dish is a very popular snack you can find in the south of France, Italy and other parts of the world. It can be called socca, farinata, panisse depending where you are, and i’m sure there are even more names for it. It’s a very simple chickpea batter made with chickpea flour, olive oil, water and salt, you let it rest for a bit and depending what you want to do with it you can fry, bake or simply cook it on the stove. Some socca’s you find are creamy and crispy, some are thinner and some are plumper, it really depends where in the world you’re eating it.
My version and this recipe is for a creamy middle and crispy edges. I find it to be the best base whenever I can’t really be bothered to cook much, I make the socca and pile a bunch of ingredients on top and call it a day. It’s delicious and very versatile. I’ve also made mini blini type of canapés with the batter, i’ve spread it thinner and made savoury crêpes with it etc…
makes: 4-5 medium soccas or loads of blini type pancakes
prep/cooking time: 20-40 minutes
Ingredients
2 cups chickpea flour
2 cups water
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil, and extra for the pan
Method:
1. In a medium bowl, add all the ingredients and whisk until you’re left with a smooth, lump-free batter. Set it aside and let it rest for a minimum of 15 minutes, up to overnight in the fridge.
To make a small/med socca base:
1. Turn your grill setting in your oven on.
2. In a cast iron skillet or an oven safe pan, add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan, i use 1-2 tbsp. Heat it up to medium high heat and pour the batter into the hot pan. I add around 1 cup of batter. Let it bubble and set on the sides, drizzle 1 tsp of olive oil on the top of the socca and put it in the oven on a rack towards the top. Let it cook until the top is no longer wet, you can let the top brown a little before pulling it out.
To make mini fluffy blinis:
1. In a non stick pan, add 1 tbsp of oil on medium high heat. When the pan is hot, drop 2-3 tbsp worth of batter for 1 blini, cooking as many as you can at a time- this will depend on the size of your pan. Flip the blinis when bubbles come up to the surface. Cook until both sides are golden, this should take around 1 minute.
3. Take the socca or blinis out of the pan and garnish with whatever you wish to. Serve them hot or slightly warm.