Seaweed socca pizza

Socca is a traditional, French savory pancake made from chickpea flour. This recipe can also be used to make pizza, and gluten-free pizza at that! You can use the basic recipe for all kinds of dishes, but for Ocean Greens we can’t help but have umami play first fiddle and have seaweed as a primary seasoning. Serve this recipe with the Wild Rice Salad with Hijiki and the Simple & fast Samphire or Sea Aster.

Serves 4

SOCCA
3 1/3 cups (340 g) chickpea flour
1/2 cup (75 g) kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
1 tablespoon + 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh Italian herbs (e.g., oregano, thyme, and or rosemary), finely chopped
1 tablespoon + 1 1/2 teaspoons persil de la mer (seaweed seasoning)
1 1/2  teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups (600 ml) lukewarm water
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for

SOCCA TOPPINGS
1 ounce (25 g) sea spaghetti
16 green asparagus spears
14 ounces (400 g) cherry tomatoes, halved
1 red onion, slice
Olive oil for roasting
Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

PESTO FROM THE SEA
1.5 ounces (40 g) fresh kombu (or a mix of kombu and wakame)
1/3 cup (50 g) roasted pine nuts
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 cup (25 g) fresh basil (including stems)
1 cup (25 g) arugula
2 tablespoons (25 ml) extra virgin olive oil + extra for storing
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Extras
Fresh basil or arugula, optional
Nutritional yeast, optional
Extra virgin olive oil

Combine the chickpea flour, olives, Italian herbs, persil de la mer, salt, and pepper in a large bowl
While whisking, add the water, lemon juice, and olive oil. Whisk until thoroughly combined. The batter
should be pretty thick. Cover with a dish towel and let rest for at least 30 minutes to let it thicken.

Cook the sea spaghetti following directions on the package, drain, and set aside.

Meanwhile prepare the Pesto from the Sea. Thoroughly rinse the kombu with water, making sure all pickling salt has been washed off. Dab dry and cut into pieces. Puree the kombu, nuts, garlic, basil, arugula, olive oil, and lemon juice in a food processor until it forms a smooth paste. Put the pesto in a bowl and cover with a layer of olive oil. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Clean the asparagus
and remove the ends. Place the asparagus with the cherry tomatoes and red onion on the baking sheet.
Add some olive oil, toss, and season with salt and pepper.Roast the vegetables in the oven about 25 minutes,
until golden brown and crispy. Remove the vegetables and lower the temperature to 350°F (180°C).

Set out a large plate for the cooked socca. Heat a splash of olive oil in a skillet. Add a scoop of the
socca batter to make pancakes that are about 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter. Cook until the socca is
firm, about 3 minutes; flip it halfway through to cook both sides, just as you would for regular pancakes.
Slide the socca onto the plate. Repeat with the rest of the batter. You should be able to make about six
of them.

Arrange each socca into a pizza: Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the socca “crust”
on the paper. If you have several sheets or if you’ve made small soccas you might be able to fit them all
in the oven at once. Spread Pesto from the Sea over the soccas. Top with the oven-roasted vegetables
and some sea spaghetti. Bake in the oven for 2 to 3 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil or arugula, some
nutritional yeast and finish with a drizzle of olive oil.

*This recipe is from the book Ocean Greens, written by our co-founder Lisette.