The final entry in my Socca Palooza is the classic Margherita; roasted cherry tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella and fresh basil. Start with some sweet little tomatoes, assorted colours are pretty.Cut them in half, mix with olive oil, salt and a bit of minced garlic. Roast them for about 20 minutes. Top the soccas with roasted tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella. Pop it under the broiler to melt the cheese. Finish with fresh basil, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of sea salt. This is a drippy messy socca. Serve with a knife, fork and lots of napkins and dig in.Â
Socca is essentially a large chickpea flour flatbread. Similar in texture to a crepe, it has crisp edges and the sweet and nutty flavor of chickpeas, with a trace of smokiness from a trip under the broiler. They originated in Nice where they are cooked in wood ovens on copper disks. I thought they would be an excellent base for pizza.
I am not very skilled at drawing or painting, so I like to think of these socca crusts as my canvas and the toppings as my paint. It’s easy to create masterpieces when late summer markets are overflowing with gorgeous produce.
Stay tuned over the next few days for a virtual “socca-palooza” and watch me create Ricotta, Peach and Honey Socca Pizzas, Za’atar Roasted Carrot and Avocado Socca Pizzas and Margherita Socca Pizzas.