Garlic Scape Socca with Hummus and Steamed Greens in Balsamic Dijon Vinaigrette...

Where does the time go? I’ve been sitting on numerous recipes that I’ve been dying to share and yet it seems this week I didn’t have a spare moment to post. It was a busy week though, and Monday was my birthday so I’ve spent my free time over the past few days celebrating. Monday was also Canada day so to all my fellow Canadian friends and readers I hope you had a good holiday and enjoyed yourself!

So anyway, back to those recipes. Well, the whole reason I posted my Classic Hummus  recipe last week, was because I was planning to post this socca recipe the day after! But time got away from me and now I’m posting it a week late, though better late then never right?

Now, the last time I posted about Socca was last December, and I had fully intended to post more Socca recipes because it really is a new favorite food of mine and I make it quite often. Though it seems to always work out that I tend to make socca when I have limited time - which means my camera is never at the ready and so I wolf the food down without snapping any pics. This time however I was preparing a socca recipe with the full intention of posting about it because one of my absolute favorite things is back in season GARLIC SCAPES! As soon as I saw them at the market I knew I would have to use them to make Socca, it seemed to me to be the perfect marriage of two amazing things. I’m sure you recall my love of Garlic Scapes, and if you haven’t tried them yet I strongly encourage you to go out and buy some. If you don’t know what to do with them you can always try these recipes Mighty Green Pasta with Garlic Scapes and Creamy Lemon Dill Sauce , Garlic Scape Soup,  Garlic Scape and Collard Green Pizza or make this socca!

So since Socca are French, I decided that for this particular recipe I wanted to use some French flavor pairings like Herbs de Provence, and Dijon Mustard, with a lot of greens and a nice bean spread. After some careful consideration I thought a simple classic hummus would taste fantastic spread over socca, and so that’s how this recipe was born. It’s an interesting amalgamation of flavors and somehow they all work beautifully together. Try it and See, I think you’ll be just as happy as we were with the finished result.

Garlic Scape Socca with Hummus and Steamed Greens in Balsamic Dijon Vinaigrette

Socca 

8 Garlic Scapes sliced
1/4 red onion diced
3 Tbsp Capers
1 ½ C chickpea flour
1 ½ C water
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Herbs de Provence
½ tsp Smoked Paprika
½ tsp White Pepper
Sea Salt to taste

Greens 

1 Bunch Kale
1 Bunch Arugula
2 ½ Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 ½ Tbsp Maple Syrup

1 Recipe Classic Hummus  or Hummus of your choice

For the Socca -

- Preheat the Oven to 425'F

- Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Make a well in the center and add the water and stir to combine into a smooth batter. Add the sliced garlic scapes, red onion, and capers. Stir to combine.

- Lightly oil a cast iron skillet, then heat it over medium high heat. When the skillet is hot, pour in the batter and let it cook for 1 minute.

- Remove the skillet from the heat, and place it into the preheated oven. Cook for 20 minutes or until the socca is dry and pulling away slightly from the edges. Let the Socca cool for ten minutes then slice into quarters or eighths.

For the Greens - 

- Fill a medium sized pot with an inch or two of water. Fit with a steamer basket and place the greens inside. Steam lightly for 3-5 minutes until the greens are wilted but the kale still has a bit of texture. Transfer mixture to a bowl.

- Combine the Balsamic Vinegar, Dijon Mustard, and Maple Syrup in a bowl. Whisk until smooth then pour over the steamed greens.

Assembly - 

- Spread a generous amount of humus on each slice of Socca, and top with a generous amount of the steamed greens/ Then enjoy.

- Alternately, you can spread the humus over the socca, and eat the steamed greens on the side as a salad. It’s up to you, but it all tastes great mixed together!

PS: Apologies for the pictures, I know it's kind of hard to see the socca because I really loaded up my plate with the steamed greens. That's the way it's suppose to be though right? 

Simple Socca with Fava Bean Spread and Sauteed Kale...

I know I haven’t been keeping up with this as well as I should have been, but with the holiday season I’ve been a little pressed for time. School has been brutal the past couple of weeks as I struggled to finish all of my assignments in time to take my final - which I did today, and aced! - And any time I’ve had not devoted to school has been divided between work, holiday planning/Christmas shopping and watching documentaries on Netflix until my one month free-trial runs out on the 24th. Suffice to say I haven’t been doing a lot of cooking, or rather I have been, but I haven’t really been ‘creating. ‘ Mostly I’ve been relying on my good and trusty cook books to see me through, particularly those cook books devoted to healthful recipes that can be made in under 30 minutes. As unlike everyone else - or so it seems - I’m actually trying to keep with my routine this holiday season rather then use the holiday as an excuse to excessively binge on high fat junk foods. So I’ve been eating a lot of salad - which I’ve been craving lately anyway - and a lot of soup because the days are growing colder, a lot of things you probably wouldn’t find to enticing except for maybe the Socca.

Socca you see is my new favorite thing. - That and firtatta but more on that another time! Now Socca is a specialty in Southeastern French cuisine particularly in and around Nice. However it apparently originates in Genoa, Italy, and over time spread to Nice where it became popular throughout the region of the Ligurian Sea.  There are apparently similar dishes in countries such as Algeria, Argentina and Uruguay but I digress. The Socca I’m talking about is of the French variety. For those of you still unsure of what a Socca is, it’s a crispy thin pancake cooked in a cast iron skillet and eaten as a finger food while piping hot. It’s seasoned with fresh herbs, and generous amounts of black pepper and is typically eaten on it’s own. However I’m quite fond of turning my socca into a kind of pizza topped with a bean dip instead of a marinara sauce, and a lightly dressed salad. Making your meal an all in one sure makes cleanup a breeze! Over the past few weeks I’ve made quite a few socca’s, I’m typically making it twice a week now, and so I’ve tried a lot of different things, but this was one of my favorite combinations, and my husbands too. It’s sort of a cross between Provincial and Italian with a little red hot jalapeno thrown in for good measure, but what it really is, is delicious so I hope you try it out.

Simple Socca with Fava Bean Spread and Sauteed Kale

Socca 

1 ½ C Chickpea Flour
½ tsp Sea Salt
1/4 - ½ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
3-4 Nice Sprigs Fresh Rosemary minced
1 tsp Dried Basil
1 tsp Dried Oregano
½ tsp Garlic Powder
1 ½ C Water
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 C Minced Kalamata Olives
1/4 C Minced Sun-dried Tomatoes
1/4 C Minced Green Onion
Minced Pickled Jalapeno to taste - try between 2-4 Tbsp.

Fava Bean and Sun-dried Tomato Spread

1 15oz Can Fava Beans drained and rinsed
2 Garlic Cloves - or to taste
6 Oil-Packed Sun-Dried Tomatoes
1 tsp Dried Basil
Sea Salt and Black Pepper to Taste
2 Tbsp Olive Oil - optional
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
2 Tbsp Water to thin as needed

Topping 

1-2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Large Red Onion sliced thin
1 Large Bunch Kale cut into bite sized pieces.
10 Cherry Tomatoes halved
2 Tbsp Hemp or Sesame Seeds
Sea Salt and Pepper to taste
Ume Vinegar to taste

- Preheat oven to 425'F

- To make Socca whisk flour, salt, pepper, rosemary, basil, oregano, garlic powder, water and olive oil together in a bowl and set aside for 30 minutes.  - While Socca is resting you can make the Fava Spread and the topping.

- After thirty minutes whisk in all remaining ingridients.

- Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat on top of the stove. Spray with a little non-stick cooking spray. Once hot enough that water sizzles pour the Socca batter into the pan. Let the socca cook on high in the pan for 1 minute until the edges turn golden brown.

- Turn off the burner, and remove the cast iron pan, placing it into the heated oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes until light golden brown.

- To make the Fava Bean Spread combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until completely smooth and spreadable. Adding more water or oil to thin as needed. Taste for seasonings and adjust as necessary.

- To make topping. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until translucent about 5-7 minutes.

- Add Kale and saute for another 5-8 minutes until kale is wilted and tender. Add in cherry tomatoes and saute for 2-3 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, ume vinegar and hemp seeds. When the mixture has reached it’s desired tenderness and flavor remove from heat.

- To assemble, cut the socca into four equal pieces and divide amongst 2-4 people. Spread each wedge of socca with a generous amount of the fava spread and top with a generous helping of the sauteed kale mixture.

- Enjoy! Seriously i'm so in love with socca you may see more recipes for it and variations of it from me in the future!

PS: Socca’s seem to be becoming a little more popular in North America. Over the past few weeks I’ve been making them I’ve seen them mentioned a few times in magazines, blog posts, and even in newly released cook books! Also another great fact about Socca is that they’re naturally gluten-free, and vegan!