Tomato and Caramelized Onion topped Socca
Socca is an unleavened chick pea pancake which makes it the perfect base to be topped with caramelized onions offset by acidic tomatoes.
For breakfast, you can top them with an egg. If you have leftover soccas, toast them in the oven with cheese and crushed red pepper.
This is a slightly modified version of Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe from Plenty. You can easily store soccas in the fridge or freezer and reheat in the oven. You can also leave uncooked batter in your fridge for a few days.
Tomato and Caramelized Onion Socca Ingredients
4 cups grape tomatoes
olive oil
3.5 pounds of white onions
¼ c dried thyme leaves
salt and black pepper
1 ¾ c chickpea flour
2 cups water
2 eggs
Tomato and Caramelized Onion Socca Directions
Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Half the tomatoes pole to pole. Put them on a rimmed sheet pan or Pyrex, toss them with ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp of black pepper, and 1 Tbl of olive oil. Arrange the tomato halves cut side up and space them out. Roast them about 40 minutes. The timing will vary depending on the tomato size and how juicy they are. We’re looking for them to start to shrivel (intensifies their flavor) but still have moisture in them.
Heat ¼ c of olive oil in a saute pan. Slice off the ends of the onion, cut the onion in half down the pole. Put the flat side of the onion down and slice pole to pole. This will give you a milder onion flavor than cutting them in the other direction. As you cut one onion, put it in the pan. You want to hear a little initial sizzle. If you don’t leave the onion in the pan and increase the heat a little. There’s no need to wait to have them all cut before cooking – that will only take more time. Add ½ tsp salt, 1 tsp of black pepper, and dried thyme leaves. Leave the pan uncovered and stir occasionally. You want the onions to be soft and the lightest of caramelization. While I typically go for darker the better, it’s not in this dish. It’s time to exercise self control here.
Heat a cast iron pan or other frying pan with a little olive oil (just enough to coat the bottom). Mix chickpea flour, water, eggs and a pinch of salt. Add more water if needed to get a thin, almost crepe thin batter. You’ll want the batter to be not quite a ¼” thick once poured. If you’re a batter taster, it will taste like bland, watery hummus that’s grainy. Hang in there with me.
Drop a dot of batter into the pan. If the oil bubbles around the batter, you’re good to go. If not, increase your heat. If it’s crazy bubbles and plenty of sound, reduce the heat. Pour some batter into the pan. You can make them different sizes, these are pretty easy to flip so you can make them on the bigger side if you like. I like them to have jagged edges, but you could go for the smooth circle. When the edges are set, it’s time to flip the pancake. If your pancake is sticking a little, take your spatula and work around the circumference of the pancake, then flip. If it’s sticking all the way through, use a little more oil next time. If you’re using a cast iron pan, you shouldn’t have any sticking.
When you flip it, you should have a few golden spots on the top (cooked) side. Let the bottom cook and remove from heat. Put the pancakes in a single layer (preferably on a cooling rack).
When serving, reheat your tomatoes in a 400 degree oven. Place the soccas directly on the oven rack until they’re warm. Put the socca on a plate top with onions then tomatoes.
Notes
If you don’t have grape tomatoes, you can use cherry (maybe halved or quartered) or use Roma tomatoes (large dice – about the size of a half of a grape tomatoes). Beef steak isn’t ideal, but will work. Many large tomatoes don’t have enough flesh for this dish.
