Farinata Italian Flatbread Food

CECINA OR FARINATA - LIGURIAN CHICKPEA FLATBREAD

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl add chickpea flour and gradually start adding water. Whisk well until the batter is smooth with an even consistency and without lumps.
• Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and let it sit for at least 5 hrs. Better yet, leave it at a room temperature overnight. Otherwise you risk getting a grainy texture instead of creamy and custardy.
• Preheat the oven to 500F.If you're using a cast iron skillet place it in the oven as well.
• Skim off any foam that could have formed on the surface of the batter and whisk well after that. You'll notice how creamy and smooth the batter had become, especially if you let it rest for a longer time and allowed the flour to absorb as much liquid as it needed.Add 1 tbsp of olive oil and salt to taste. Stir well.
• Once the oven is preheated to the right temperature, spread remaining tablespoon of olive oil over your preheated cast iron skillet or pizza pan. Pour the batter into the pan.Using a fork stir gently the olive oil on the pan to create an even and well diffused texture.
• Carefully place the pan in the oven and cook for 10 minutes. After that turn the oven to broil and cook farinata for another 10-15 minutes until golden brown.
• It tastes best when seasoned with freshly ground black pepper and a few pinches of salt.

FARINATA (ITALIAN FLATBREAD)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Brush a 9-inch tart pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil and place in the oven to warm up.
• Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add green onion and garlic. Cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Mix chickpea flour with lukewarm water until smooth. Set aside for 20 minutes at room temperature.
• Skim foam from the top of chickpea-water mixture. Add remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Mix in onion-garlic mixture. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add Gruyere cheese and mix well. Remove tart tin from oven and pour in chickpea mixture.
• Bake it in the preheated oven until crispy, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cut into triangles before serving.

HOW TO MAKE FARINATA

Steps:

• Combine garbanzo flour and water in a bowl; whisk until batter is smooth. Cover bowl with plastic wrap or a plate and let stand at room temperature for 2 hours. Skim as much foam as possible from top of batter. Whisk salt, rosemary, and 3 tablespoons olive oil into batter.
• Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C).
• Place a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat and heat until smoking hot. Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil in skillet and swirl to coat bottom of skillet with oil. Continue to heat until oil shimmers and a wisp of smoke rises from oil.
• Quickly pour batter into hot oil; carefully transfer skillet to preheated oven.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cake is browned and crusty, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer immediately to a plate, cut into wedges, and serve hot. Garnish with freshly ground black pepper.

SOCCA (FARINATA)

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 450. Put a well-seasoned or nonstick 12-inch pizza pan or cast-iron skillet in oven. (If you have a socca pan, obviously that will work well also.)
• Put the chickpea flour in a bowl; add the salt and pepper. Slowly add 1 cup lukewarm water, whisking to eliminate lumps. Stir in 2 tablespoons olive oil. Cover and let sit while the oven heats, or for as long as 12 hours. The batter should be about the consistency of heavy cream.
• Remove the pan, pour 2 tablespoons of the oil into it and swirl. Add the onions return the pan to the oven and cook, stirring once or twice, until they're well browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the rosemary. Stir the onions and rosemary into the batter, then immediately pour the batter into the pan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the pancake is firm and the edges set.
• Heat the broiler and brush the top of the pancake with 1 or 2 tablespoons of oil if it looks dry. Set the pancake a few inches away from the broiler, and cook just long enough to brown it in spots. Cut it into wedges, and serve hot or warm.

LIGURIAN FARINATA (SAVORY ITALIAN PANCAKE OR FLATBREAD)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, add the flour to the water, a little at a time, mixing and seasoning with salt until all of the flour and water has been absorbed; Add Optional Rosemary at this point.
• Let it rest for 4 hours (Or even better overnight).
• After this time, a layer of foam will have developed on the surface - Scrape it off with a spoon.
• Add the olive oil and remove the Rosemary (Optional) - Stir until all the Oil is absorbed.
• Pour into an olive oil well greased baking pan - the right one is called testo, made of "tinned copper" It should be about an eighth of an inch thick, perhaps a little more - a small deep dish Pizza pan will do (We used an iron skillet).
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Remove from the oven when one of the corners (or the edge) starts to appear dark and has turned a golden color.
• Sprinkle plenty of pepper and eat immediately.
• ***It is of paramount importance that the pan is perfectly flat and level when in the oven, otherwise one of the corners will be thicker and will be undercooked when the opposite corner starts to darken. It tends to stick if you do not use enough oil. Also use parchment paper.

FARINATA (SOCCA)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 480°F or 250°C. Add chickpea flour, salt, and water to a bowl and blend with an immersion blender for 3 to 5 minutes till completely smooth. You can also use a regular blender. With a spoon, remove some of the foam from the top of the chickpea batter. We do this because the foam tends to burn in the oven.
• Add the oil to the baking sheet and spread it out evenly.You could use baking paper instead of oil on the baking sheet, but in that case, you'd have to add the oil to the batter. The thing is, a socca without oil is not going to be good.
• Gently pour the chickpea batter into the center of the pan or skillet, but first over a spoon and not pour directly into the pan. Pouring directly from the bowl into the pan will displace the oil, and the socca will stick.
• Bake at 480F (250C) for 10 minutes, then set your oven to grill mode and grill the farinata for another 10 minutes. It should be well cooked, golden and crispy on top, and soft and smooth on the bottom.
• Remove from oven, sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper and serve.Farinata is best eaten hot, right out of the oven.