Socca with Leeks and Herbed Almond Spread

There is nothing more rewarding than making a delicious meal out of the little odd's and end's kicking around the kitchen.  Although I work in a health food store and can easily pick up whatever I want after work, sometimes I like to challenge myself by using up whatever I have at home. Now, I'm not one of those people that has a well stocked pantry, mainly because I tend to avoid pre-packaged and canned food and I only buy fruits and vegetables, as needed for a recipe. I could probably tell you everything in my fridge and cupboards, meaning the list isn't very long.  So, the challenge of making something out of nothing isn't always easy.

It's especially not easy when you didn't make it grocery shopping last weekend, pulled your back out, have been out of work for several days and can't make it to the store.  The challenge of cooking is also there.  It has to be made it less than 20 minutes, and not involve any heavy lifting. 

Luckily, I had some farmers market loot leftover from the weekend so I was able to throw together a couple of decent salads. I'm still thanking sweet baby Jesus that I remembered to pick up some eggs at the market because they probably saved me from near starvation. Poached, scrambled, fried or hardboiled, served with some toast, and you've got one hell of a half assed meal.

When I attempted to throw something together last night, things were looking slim. REALLLLL slim.  Of course my husband volunteered to get me whatever I wanted at the store, but I was cranky and indecisive and told him I would find something around the house. He ended the call with a reluctant ohhhh kayyyyy, knowing there wasn't a dang thing in the house to eat.

So, I accepted this challenge, and dammit I won.

I wanted something high in carbs. You gotta coat your stomach with starch when you're downing pain killers and muscle relaxants like it's your job. All I had kicking around was a stale loaf of sourdough and I had already had toast for breakfast.

Then a lightbulb went off.... SOCCA!

Huh, you say...

Socca is a chickpea flour pancake cooked in a skillet, much like a crepe.  Basically, you combine chickpea flour, water, salt, pepper and a little olive oil to make a thin batter. Let it rest, then pour it into a hot cast iron pan and bake until lightly browned. It's kinda chewy, kinda crispy, and really delicious. 
I usually eat socca straight up, cut into pieces drizzled with olive oil with flurries of black pepper and flaky salt, but I've also seen it used as a "pizza crust" all over the internet, so I figured I would try something new.

Since I primarily follow a vegetarian diet, I always have a variety of nuts or seeds in the house, for snacking, adding to salads or for making my own nut butters or nut cheeses. Inspired by this recipe from Love and Lemons, I decided to whip up a quick almond spread to use as a base. Almonds, garlic, lemon, a little miso and nutritional yeast and some fresh herbs.  

I topped it with some quickly sauteed leeks that were lodged in the back of my fridge and the last of the pea shoots from the farmers market and I had dinner.

Socca with Leeks and Herbed Almond Spread (serves 2-4)
Slightly adapted from from Love and Lemons

Socca:

1 c. chickpea flour
1 c. lukewarm water
1 t. sea salt
1/4 t. cracked pepper
2 T. extra virgin olive oil, plus more for cooking the socca
1 clove garlic, grated

Mark Bittman will talk you through making socca here.  You can see I used his recipe, but omitted the onion and rosemary and added garlic. This will either make one thick 12" round or two thin 10" rounds.

 Almond Herb Spread:


1 c. almonds, blanched or soaked overnight, skins removed*
1/2 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
1 t. miso paste
Juice and zest of one small lemon
2 t. nutritional yeast
1/2-3/4 c. water (less water if you soaked your nuts, more if you blanched them or used them raw)
1 T. olive oil
1/2 c. mixed chopped herbs, I used scallions and parsley, but I inagine dill or chives would be good too
salt & pepper, to taste


To blanch almonds, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add almonds, cook for 30 seconds and drain. When cool enough to handle, slide the skins off with your fingers. If you are planning on making this the following day, you can also soak almonds overnight in enough water to cover, drain and rub the skins off. 
Place all ingredients (except the water and herbs) in a food processor and blend. Slowly stream in water (you may not use all of it) until the mixture is well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Transfer mixture to a bowl and stir in 1/4 c. herbs, saving the remaining 1/4 c. for topping the socca.

Leeks:

2 Small leeks, sliced into rounds

Heat a little olive oil in a sautee pan. Add leeks, a pinch of salt and some cracked pepper and cook for a couple minutes until soft.

After your socca has cooled a bit (about 5 minutes), slather on some of the almond herb spread (you won't use all of it). Top with the sauteed leeks, some fresh herbs and pea shoots or your favorite sprouts.

Roasted Fennel and Tempeh Sausage Pizza

It all started with a bunch of fennel from the farmers market.... and an intense craving for something with cheese.. and bread... and more cheese.

I love the savory/sweet taste of fennel, probably because it tastes like a black jelly bean flavored vegetable.
For those of you that have never experience the deliciousness that is fennel, it tastes like licorice and pairs well with several foods. 

Fennel is great thinly sliced and added to a salad, but one of my favorite ways to enjoy this vegetable is to toss it with some olive oil, salt and pepper and roast it up, 'till it's soft and slightly browned around the edges. You can then toss it with pasta (either hot or cold), add to a sandwich or use it as a pizza topping.

I could have kept this pizza simple... a little roasted fennel, some caramelized onions and a bit of cheese, but I wanted something with a little more substance.  I had a brick of tempeh hanging out in my fridge and decided to make some sausage crumbles to go on top.  Now, for those of you that eat meat, you're probably all like.. tempeh on a pizza.. gross, and tempeh that tastes like sausage, yeah right.

But whatever... This stuff is DANG good...and GOOD for you.  I've had many a meat eater impressed with these crumbles, and really, it's all in the spices.  Fennel seed, garlic, sage, crushed red pepper.  All in sausage.  The texture is a little different but once blanketed under a layer of cheese, you would never know the difference.  All you taste is savory, cheesy, bready goodness.

And thats's all that matters.

So, anyways...

Make this pizza.

It's good.

Roasted Fennel and Tempeh Sausage Pizza (makes 2 10" pizzas)

1 batch pizza dough. 
1 medium sized fennel bulb, halved, cut into 1/2" thick slices
2 small yellow onions, thinly sliced
8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into small pieces
1/2 c. grated pecorino romano
1 batch tempeh sausage crumbles (recipe below)
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
black pepper


Tempeh Sausage Crumbles

4 oz. organic tempeh
1/2 T. fennel seed
1/2 t. dried basil
1/2 t. oregano
1/4 t. crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 t. sage
1 t. garlic, minced
1 T. tamari
1/2 T. extra virgin olive oil
2 t. lemon juice

In a sautee pan, crumble tempeh and add just enough water to cover. Over high heat sautee tempeh until most of the water has been absorbed.  Add remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until tempeh is browned, about 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place fennel in a bowl, drizzle with 1-2 T. extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Spread on a sheet pan and bake for 15-20 minutes (stirring fennel halfway through), until soft and lightly browned. Set aside.
Meanwhile, make your tempeh sausage crumbles. Set aside to cool.
Now, make the caramelized onions. Heat 2 T. olive oil and a skillet over medium heat. Add onions, a pinch of salt and pepper and cook the onions, stirring every five minutes, until golden brown. Set aside
Now.. let's make some pizza!
Place a pizza stone in the middle of the oven and increase heat to 500 degrees.Roll out your pizza dough on a piece of parchment paper. Place on the bottom side of a large metal sheetpan (you'll use this to slide the pizza onto the stone) and drizzle with a very thin layer of olive oil, just enough to lightly coat the crust.  Scatter on a layer of onions, some mozzarella, roasted fennel, the tempeh crumbles and top with a little more mozzarella. Carefully slide the pizza on to the stone.Bake for 5 minutes, rotate 180 degrees, and bake for an additional 7-10 minutes, until the crust is browned and the cheese is melty.  Slide the pizza off the parchment paper onto a cooling rack and top with grated pecorino. Repeat with the remaining crust. 

Raw Pesto Pizza with Tapenade and Cashew Ricotta

Ok.. let's be real, this isn't a pizza.

Although pesto and tapenade can be found on a traditional pizza, the rest of the ingredients don't really bare any resemblance. The crust is made from buckwheat and flax, brazil nuts stand in for parmesan, and blended cashews make a creamy cheese substitute. 

I love pizza as much as the next person, especially when it's topped with shaved asparagus, butternut squash, or corn and zucchini. I've been cutting way back on my dairy and cheese consumption, so I figured this would be a tasty stand in.  Sure, I could have just piled a ton of vegetables on a pizza crust sans cheese but I wanted to do something a little different...

I've been on a bit of a raw food kick lately.. maybe it's the warmer(ish) weather, or the need to do a little internal spring cleaning, or the fact that summer is on it's way and I'm not sure if my ass is going to fit into my bikini.

I made some buckwheat and flax crackers the other day and decided to use some as a "pizza" crust base inspired by a raw pizza I used to make when I worked at Cafe Gratitude.

So... I whipped up a batch of tapenade using some kalamata olives, capers, garlic, parsley and a little olive oil. Then I made my go-to pesto consisting of spinach, basil, walnuts, olive oil, garlic and a little lemon. 

The restaurant made a delicious brazil nut parmesan which I used to sprinkle on everything.. just brazil nuts, a little garlic and a pinch of salt in the food processor. 10 seconds. Done.

For the cheese, I soaked some cashews for about 4 hours and blended them with a squeeze lemon and some salt thinning it out with a little water.

First I spread the crackers with a bit of the cashew cheese, followed by the tapenade and then the pesto. Then I added a generous sprinkle of the brazil nut parm and a handful of pea shoots.

Healthy.
Delicious.

Raw Food done right.

Pizza with Butternut Squash, Caramelized Onions and Fried Sage

Another unconventional pizza.

No sauce. No mozzarella.

Not that there is anything wrong with that...

I just like to pimp up my pizzas with fresh seasonal ingredients.... shaved asparagus pizza in the spring and toppings like corn and zucchini at the peak of summer.  With the copious amounts of butternut squash kicking around the house (I swear I ate it at six different meals the past week) and a fierce craving for pizza.. this little gem was born.

This can come together really quickly if you have some pre roasted butternut squash on hand.  I like to roast a bunch up and use it to make a quick salad or pasta dish... or give it to my dogs for a little snackaroo. 
If you don't have any on hand, you just need to peel it, cube it, toss it with some olive oil, salt and pepper and roast it for 25 minutes or so at 425 degrees.  The most labor intensive part is the peeling and chopping, but with a good peeler and a sharp knife you should have no problem.

Now... onto the caramelized onions.. They take a little bit of time, but most of it is hands off (with the exception of an occasional stir).  They cook down like crazy so I use alot more than I think i will need. Three cups of sliced onions will yield roughly 1/2 -3/4 c. of caramelized onions.  With this pizza, the more onions, the better!

For the cheese I used nettle meadow farms fromage blanc.  It's very neutral flavored, almost like a chevre but not as creamy.. but not in a bad way.  They are a little pricy, but I like to buy their cheeses because they are local and freaking delicious.


Pizza with butternut squash, caramelized onions and fried sage (makes 2- 10" pizzas)

1 batch of thin crust pizza
1 lb. butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
3 c. sliced onion
2 c. fresh spinach
3-4 oz. fromage blanc, chevre (goat cheese) or feta
1/2 c. grated pecorino romano or parmesan
8 sprigs of fresh sage
olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Place peeled, chopped butternut squash on a sheetpan and drizzle with 2-3 T. olive oil, and a liberal amount of salt and pepper.
Roast for 20-25 minutes until fork tender.
Meanwhile, heat 1-2 T. olive oil in a sautee pan over medium heat.  Add your onions, a pinch of salt and pepper and stir to coat the onions with the oil. Reduce the heat to medium low and stir onions every five minutes or so.  If they begin to stick you can add a splash of water and continue to stir.  Cook the onions for 20-25 minutes until they turn a medium shade of brown.  Set aside.
To fry the sage, heat 1/2 T. olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add the sage and fry until crispy, about 1 minute. Transfer to a paper towel to drain.

To prepare the pizza, roll out the crust. Drizzle 1/2 T. olive oil on the crust and spread out with your fingers. Add the spinach, followed by the onions, butternut squash, and fromage blanc. Bake according to the thin crust recipe above, or until the crust is browned. Crumble the sage and scatter it over the pizza along with a dusting of pecorino romano and salt and pepper, to taste

...up close and personal...

pizza with zucchini, corn, feta and cilantro

The full title should actually read: thin crust pizza with zucchini, fresh corn, red onion, jalapenos, lime, feta, cilantro, and black wax pecorino romano with roasted garlic oil.
Yeah, there is alot going on here.

Fortunately, this is one of those recipes that comes together in no time. A little bit of slicing and dicing and a quick, no rise pizza crust and you are good to go. It honestly takes less time than ordering takeout... unless, of course you live next to a pizza joint.  But I'm guessing you don't.

This came together based on one of the pizzas at the famous Berkeley, California institution, The Cheeseboard Collective http://cheeseboardcollective.coop/pizza.
If you live in Berkeley or any where near Berkeley (I'm talkin' a 60 mile radius), do yourself a favor and hit up the joint.  It is probably hands down one of my top three pizzas evah.
And...I'm a New Yorker so I don't play when it comes to pizza..

This recipe is pretty versatile. Use as much or as little toppings as you prefer.  I heart vegetables and cheese so I went a little heavy on both...

Thin crust pizza with zucchini, corn, feta and cilantro (serves 2-4 people)

1 batch thin crust pizza (i like this one: http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/main-dish/recipe-homemade-thin-crust-pizza-045499)
1 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/4" rounds
1-1/2 c. fresh corn (about 2 ears)
1/4 small red onion, sliced
1/2 c. feta, crumbled
1/2 c. grated pecorino romano
1/2 c. cilantro, chopped
1-2 jalapenos, seeds removed, diced
2-3 T. roasted garlic oil or extra virgin olive oil
juice from 1 lime
salt and pepper, to taste

Roll out your pizza crust.  Spread a layer of garlic oil on the bottom, just enough to coat the dough. Scatter the jalapenos on the dough. In a small bowl, toss the zucchini, corn and red onion with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Pile the toppings on the dough, followed by the feta.  Bake on a pizza stone until the edges of the crust are browned and the cheese is nice and melty. Top with the grated pecorino, cilantro, a squeeze of lime and a drizzle of roasted garlic oil or olive oil.  Sprinkle some salt and pepper on that pie and you're in business.

Shaved Asparagus Pizza

I should be feasting on summers bounty.. tomatoes, corn, zucchini, basil etc.. But, I still want asparagus.  In the past year I've really made an effort to eat seasonally. Not only does the food taste way better but it's alot cheaper too.  A skimpy bunch of basil in December will set you back $4, whereas a pimpin' bunch will cost a buck in August at the farmers market.  A tomato or a peach in January will taste like carboard and winter squash mid-summer is mealy and flavorless. 

Asparagus is a spring time food.  One of those foods that I fantasize about after eating hearty stews, squashes and root vegetables all winter long.  It's at it's peak in April and May but you usually see it kicking around supermarkets until August.  I'm pretty sure this was my last fling with asparagus until next spring, so I made it count.

Most people don't know that you can eat asparagus raw. 
You can.
It's delicious.

I like to shave it.

Grab asparagus at the bottom and peel it like you would a carrot.

Pretty ribbons!  Sometimes I'll add some lemon, olive oil and a nice shaved cheese and eat it as a light salad.
Pizza sounded better than salad.

I got to work on my dough.  I'm a big fan of thin crust pizza. This recipe: http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/main-dish/recipe-homemade-thin-crust-pizza-045499
has been my go-to for years.  The dough doesn't need to rise, so it's great on evenings when you want homemade pizza in under an hour.

Flour. Yeast. Salt. Water.
Go.

Perlini!  Aka mini mozzarella.

So... roll out your dough and brush with some olive oil.  You can use some roasted garlic oil if you want to get your crazy on.
Toss your asparagus with some olive oil, sea salt, fresh cracked pepper and a pinch of crushed red pepper.
Scatter some cheese on the crust.  Pile on the asparagus. Top with more cheese.  Pop it in the oven and bake till cheese is melty and the crust is browned. 
I topped it with some grated pecorino romano, some roasted garlic and a drizzle of fancy extra virgin olive oil before serving to make it even MORE delicious.

My pee stunk. But, it was well worth it.