Monday, January 24, 2011

Sweetly Spiced Socca

Socca is a new discovery, and an amazing one at that. Made from chickpea flour, it is typically crafted with olive oil, savory salts, peppers, and other herbs, cooked over a wood fire. Luckily the oven is a decent substitute (so says this expert and this expert) so this is basically the lazy celiac's dream. You can make it thin and crispy (think pizza), or soft and almost cake like.

Tonight I decided to do some flavor experimenting. Following the advice of these gluten free bloggers, I went with a cocoa cardamom socca. It probably violates a lot of rules about traditional socca, but it is amazingly tasty so I am choosing not to care.

Preheat oven to 400.

Mix 1 cup chickpea (garbanzo) bean flour with 1/4 cup dutch cocoa, 2 tsp. vanilla, and 1 and 1/2 cups water. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil, butter, or coconut oil and pour into cake pan. Pour batter into oil and bake for 25 minutes.

There you have it! I served with some cherries for a subtly sweet and cakey nighttime snack. The possibilities are endless though--it could easily be dressed up as a brownie, baked in a skillet as a soft bread to pair with salad, turned with fresh basil in the batter and broiled with cheese on top to finish...oh yum!

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