Socca bread (Farinata)

Reading through the fabulous "Free From Food for Family and Friends" by Pippa Kendrick, I came across "Socca bread", made from only gram (chickpea) flour, olive oil and water. This was a fabulous discovery, since chickpeas are one of the few protein rich foods my daughter can currently have!

I did some research on the internet, since the roasted vegetable version Pippa has wouldn't have been possible for us, and discovered it is really, really versatile! In France it is known as Socca bread, in Italy it is called Farinata.

You make it exceedingly thin, like pancakes - there is a great recipe here.

Alternatively, you can bake it deeper to make a more filling bread, which is what we decided to do.

Ingredients

• 150g Gram Flour
• 3 tbsp Olive Oil
• 250ml water
• Pinch of salt

Method

• Sift the gram flour into a mixing bowl. (Gram flour tends to settle and get lumpy.)
• Whisk in the olive oil and water until completely smooth
• Apparently the batter should ideally sit for at least 1-2 hours before cooking.
• Pour into a flan dish for a thick bread
• Bake at 180C for apprize 30 minutes until cooked.
• Cut into wedges and serve!

Tip: This is so versatile, you can add roasted vegetables, olives, caramelised onions, bake it thin like a pizza or thick like a bread. It can be pitta bread texture or soft wedges. You choose!


UPDATE

Today I tried a thinner version of the batter, with just a little more water, and it made a lovely pancake. When the batter started to cook I added roasted courgettes, carrots and puy lentils to half and flipped it over. Apparently it was delicious!

Pancakes on Holiday!

NB This is not a paid review, I discovered this product on holiday in Norfolk and tried it out - and was so impressed I decided to Blog about it.

On holiday in Norfolk we were running short of the usual "freefrom" breakfast cereal and my twelve year old suddenly announce he "needed" pancakes. Of course he did. But it got me thinking!

We holiday in Stiffkey - I cannot recommend it enough! What was *such* a wonderful discovery though was "Stiffkey Stores" a veritable treasure trove of lovely things, retro and classic novelties and the most wonderful selection of original books for children and adults.
And coffee. Did I mention the coffee?! And best of all for us, they stock quite an impressive selection of #freefrom foods. (Please bring back Nak'd Bars for next year though!)

So that was naturally our first port of call. But in fact it was in Holt on a day riding the Poppy Line that I discovered the Larners of Holt Foodhall.  What a wonderful place! Again, a refreshingly impressive selection of freefrom foods. So I stocked up! (slightly regretted that on the train journey home...) 

Obviously, with a child "needing" pancakes this was a priority. I had tried several before and had heard of the Hale and Hearty mix but had not previously managed to obtain it.

I bought the twin pack - perfect for experimenting and feeding several hungry children! First I tried it with rice milk - worked well (top) but needed about 50ml more than the suggested 200ml of milk.

Second I tried with coconut milk - and did not need to add the extra liquid. (bottom)

The Verdict

The kids loved both, but preferred the rice milk option. These worked as savoury or sweet pancakes, there is no sugar  unless you add your own. By FAR the best mix we have tried, but it contains egg - and I didn't try without/with replacer as we had limited resources on holiday.

I would love to hear your views on mixes you have tried - visit our Facebook Page or join our chat group and share your stories!