Month: April 2011

SOcca Good

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Wow, thanks for all the positive response from yesterday’s post!  And all the compliments. 🙂

I finally used a recipe! At the beginning of the month I made a goal to follow at least one recipe a week but this socca recipe is the first I completed.  The intention behind the recipe goal was to get me out of my cooking routine and try some new things.

Socca is a French pancake made from chickpea flour, water, salt, and olive oil.  Given the simplicity of the ingredients it is surprisingly delicious with the faintest hint of falafel and a rich nuttiness.

Socca

Original recipe from David Lebovitz can be found here

  • 1 cup chickpea flour*
  • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons water
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • generous pinches of salt
  • sprinkle of cumin
*I used Bob’s Red Mill Garbanzo and Fava Bean Flour because that is what I found at the store.  It worked brilliantly but I can’t compare the flavor to plain garbanzo flour.

It’s funny to me that I am counting this as following a recipe because not only did I substitute the flour but it is so stinking simple.

Whisk everything but 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into the flour.

Let the thin batter sit for at least two hours.

I made this on Tuesday afternoon and it ended up be so ridiculously hot and sticky that evening that I couldn’t bare to turn on the oven.  The batter went into a jar and refrigerated until Wednesday night.

When you are ready to bake it off add the rest of your olive oil to an oven-safe pan (I used cast iron) and place in oven, turn on your broiler.  When the pan in hot, hot, hot, carefully pour in your batter.

And here’s where I failed to read the recipe details.  I only noticed after pouring the entire jar of batter into the pan and placing it in the oven that David’s recipe makes “about three pancakes”.   Whoops.  My dinner company and I loved the density and thickness that resulted but it did lack any resemblance to a cracker, pancake, or crepe.

After about 12 minutes on a middle rack my socca was golden brown and ready to be gobbled down.

Accompanied by a cucumber salad with garden herbs and lentil sprouts

and a side of garden hose 🙂

I now understand Ashley‘s obsession with socca, I’ve been thinking about it since the first bite and biding my time until I can whip up another.  SO GOOD.

Have a gorgeous, delicious Friday!

P.S  I pronounce it SOcca but have no clue whether this is correct, do you know?  I did a few internet searches but all I came up with were other folks as unsure as I am!

Highlight the Best

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2 Weeks to 30

So 20’s…

…frustration with those body parts I can not change.

20‘s thought: Why are my knees to nubbly and broad?

30’s thought: I’ve come a long way since getting gravel stuck in my knee riding my bike around the farm.  These knees have run a marathon, danced in front of thousands of people, and carried me from through the Andes and the Himalayas.

20’s thought: Damn my stubby little fingers with broad knuckles that turn into little sausages in the summer.

30’s thought: Well, at least my knees and knuckles match.  Long, delicate fingers have no advantage in planting a garden over compact little ones.  My hands remind me of my mother and my maternal grandmother and for them I am grateful.

20’s thought: Cute shoes don’t usually come in w i d e.

30’s thought: The wider the better to balance on and who gives a shit about feet anyway?

20’s thought: I seriously dislike my profile.

30’s thought: I look like my big sister in pictures of my profile and she’s beautiful! 🙂

Other body parts I can’t change 

  • broad shoulders
  • thick thighs
  • stretch marks on my hips
  • dark circles under my eyes no matter how rested I am
Body aspects I appreciate the most
  • my proportions; I am thick, muscular, and compact throughout my whole body
  • I have a gorgeous skin tone all year round 🙂
  • I’ve got great eyes
  • My small boobs allow me to wear v-necks and low cut tops without looking revealing
Yeah, yeah, enough about me.  This isn’t about me.  This is about each of us identifying what old, useless, negative thoughts we are holding onto about our bodies.  The energy put into these thoughts is better spent taking action on the things you can change and this is the intention I will foster in my next decade.

Highlight the best, accept the rest!