Socca! -- Nice, France

 Our duty, as men and women, is to proceed as though limitations to our ability did not exist. We are collaborators in creation. 

~Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Baris is off at his weekly four hour French class. I ought to be studying Italian, but I'm lazily spending the morning editing photos, daydreaming, researching volunteer opportunities in Croatia, yoga training programs in India, English teaching opportunities in Korea and guiltily eating spoonfuls of Nutella.

Sometimes I really dislike being a lady and dealing with frantic "that time of the month" cravings. Even though I appreciate (and fully exploit) the excuse to eat anything and everything I please.

Peanut butter. Chocolate. Ice cream. Whiskey. Hot tea. I want all of these things in my mouth now. Along with a large amount of ibuprofen.

I wouldn't say no to a hot water bottle on my low back.

I could also eat another one or seventeen fried socca pancakes. Were I to establish roots in the Riviera, socca would be a regular part of my diet -- even though I've never been a believer in chickpea flour. In fact, I usually find the distinctive flavor distracting and off-putting, especially when used it in sweet baked goods like brownies. In my mind, chickpea flour was a contaminator of chocolate, and I don't take kindly to contaminators of chocolate.

Socca converted me and it converted me hard. Gram/garbonzo/chickpea flour has found its place in my heart. Charlotte prepared a chickpea pancake/omelet during my stay in Buckinghamshire, and that flavorful fried cake oozing Camembert tugged at a few heartstrings. The socca from Lou Pilha Leva and Chez Pipo won my heart completely.

The dish is originally from Liguria (the coastal region of northwestern Italy), where it is still consumed, but under the name "farinata". It is called "cascade" in Toulon, "belecauda" in Piedmont, and "socca" in Nice, Menton, and Monaco.

Socca should be cooked on a pizza oven until golden and slightly burnt. Street vendors in Nice used to sell it in a paper cone, but now tourists are presented with their greasy fried legumes on a ho hum paper plate. Eat it hot, spice it with pepper, and don't you dare touch your fork. Pick at the burnt crispy bits. Feel the hot oil coat your fingers. Enjoy the sensation of your socca before it reaches your mouth.
 

Socca with Baris at Lou Pilha Leva. I highly recommend visiting this restaurant, should you find yourself in need of a snack in Nice.

 The menu of Chez Pipo.

Chez Pipo Socca. The texture... the texture of this dish was divine.

Tantalized by the garbanzo bean yet? Dying to try socca in your own home? THIS appears to be a good recipe. If you want more of the traditional taste, do make sure to pop it into the oven to crisp the top.

Bon appetit!

Preconceptions: None today.

Challenges: Socca!