Socca with Whipped Feta and Tomato Salad! HELLO. Crispy, creamy, tangy, and summery all on one plate.
Socca with Whipped Feta and Tomato Salad
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O.M.G.! THIS. WAS. AHHHHHHHHMAZING! So fresh, so vibrant. My new favorite healthyish snack! Thank you for sharing this.
Beverly K Linkhart
Crispy, creamy, tangy, and summery all on one plate.
Yes, yes, and yes to all of three of these things right now:
- Socca *SO CRISPY*
- Whipped feta *SO CREAMY*
- Tomato salad *SUMMER DON’T LEAVE*
Let’s talk about Socca first. The origin of Socca is heavily debated between France and Italy (known as Farinata there) but one thing is certain: this simple street food made with only chickpea flour, olive oil, water, and salt is the crispy rich snacker of your dreams.
And here is how you make this meal that isn’t really a meal but also is everything a meal should be: take your piping hot freshly baked socca out of the cast iron, break it into a few crispy, chewy pieces, swoop it through a tangy dollop of herby whipped feta, and top the whole thing with a spoonful of juicy, vinegary tomato and cucumber salad on top for a crunchy finish.
I cannot get enough of this meal-that-isn’t-really-a-meal which is exactly how I like to eat in the summer.
Prefer To Watch Instead Of Read?
Want to add chickpeas or roasted chicken? Do it.
Want to eat straight spoonfuls of whipped feta out of the food processor? You’re not wrong.
Want to make the golden crunchy edges of that socca a part of your regular life routine? I support you.
This whole combo platter meal is low-key, it’s summery, and it’s currently my favorite (healthyish) thing to eat. The variations are endless. It works well for serving people because they can make it what they want – we served it for Bjork’s parents out on the deck the other night and it was a hit all around (especially the socca).
I know you think you cannot bear to turn on your oven right now but that is the only effort required of you. Also, personal opinion, but oven in the AC > grill outside. It is HOT out there.
Go forth, whip that feta, load up your socca, make it your own!
Common Questions About Socca
How important is the pan size for the Socca?
The size of your cast iron greatly impacts the end product and how thick / thin / crispy it will be. Those crispy, thin edges are EVERYTHING. That’s why I prefer to split it into two batches when working with my 10-inch cast iron skillet.
How important is it to use a cast iron pan?
I have only used my cast iron for this. I think it could work with another oven-safe skillet but I have not tried it. Let us know in the comments if you try it!
Where do I get chickpea flour?
Most grocery stores will carry chickpea flour – often by the “Natural Foods” section or something similar. If you can’t find it at your local store, you can but it here (affiliate link).
Socca with Whipped Feta and Tomato Salad
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2-4 1x
Description
Socca with Whipped Feta and Tomato Salad! HELLO. Crispy, creamy, tangy, and summery all on one plate.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Socca:
- 1 cup chickpea flour (affiliate link)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (and extra for the pan)
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups water
For the Tomato Salad:
- 2–3 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup cucumber slices (optional, but adds a nice crunch)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1–2 tablespoons white vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 small clove garlic, grated or finely minced
- a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper
- fresh chopped herbs (optional – I like parsley)
For the Whipped Feta:
- 4-ounce container feta
- 2 ounces cream cheese, whole milk yogurt, mascarpone… something thick and creamy
- thyme, basil, rosemary, or any other herbs you like (I like thyme!)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees. While oven is preheating, mix up your tomato salad so it has a little time to sit together and get real yummy.
- Whisk all socca ingredients until smooth. Pour 1-2 tablespoons olive oil into a 10-inch cast iron skillet, and pop the skillet in the oven for 5 minutes to preheat. Pour half of the socca batter evenly into the pan and bake for 15-18 minutes, until golden around the edges. (Repeat with the second half of the batter.)
- While the socca is baking, blend the feta in a food processor or blender, or with a hand mixer, until smooth-ish. Add your cream cheese, yogurt, mascarpone, whatever you pick to help make the whole thing into a sort of fluffy, creamy sauce. Season with what you like – I love thyme, olive oil, and a little black pepper.
- Tear off chunks of hot, crispy socca to be served / dipped / spread / topped with whipped feta and a bunch of fresh, garlicky tomato salad.
Equipment
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- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Lunch
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian-Inspired
Keywords: socca, gluten free, tomato salad, cucumber salad, whipped feta, gluten free lunch, healthy lunch
Filed Under: All Recipes Dinner Gluten-Free Healthy Lunch Main Dishes Quick and Easy Recipes Salads Sandwiches Stovetop Summer Tomato Vegetarian
August 13, 2020
Nice to meet you!
I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.
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I really loved your tangy & creamy whipped feta and it looks an amazing & sound truly delicious….Lindsay…can’t wait to try it..Thanks for sharing…!
from where did you take the name Socca ?
Socca is just the given name of the food here. It’s also known as Farinata. 😊
The tomato salad looks so delicious!
https://alexagmarsh.blogspot.com/
Can you sub the chickpea flour for anything else?
Chickpea flour is pretty essential for socca, so we don’t know of a good sub that would work well in this case.
Looks amazing! can’t wait to try it. But what is socca? Sounds like a mediterrean dish (anything fresh and yummy is usually mediterrean!) 🙂
and next time I’ll read the top of your blog instead of diving right into the recipe. I can’t wait to try this.
Good question, Beverly! The origin of Socca is actually heavily debated between France and Italy (known as Farinata there).
My socca just disintegrated basically. Something wasn’t right, what did I do wrong?? 😭
So sorry to hear this, Allie. 😕 It’s hard to say what happened here without seeing your socca, but maybe a smidge more batter in the pan next time might help. Let us know how this goes!
Not sure if that was your case, but mine also disintegrated for the first and second times I tried to make this. In my case, it turned out to be the flour! I switched to the one they suggested here (Bob’s Mill) and it finally worked! My whole family loves this recipe!
Is that one 4-oz. container of feta or a 14-oz. container? Thanks!
One 4-ounce container of feta. 😉
I saw “14 ounce container,” too, and wound up with a VERY salty situation. It ruined the recipe for us, unfortunately 🙁 Maybe add a comma? Or use the words “One 4-ounce container” instead?
incredible, looks like the amazing farinata we had in Lucca!
OTW to purchase Garbanzo flour!!! …..today there was not (awesome) music to the video . It was missed as I love your choices. May be my PC but fyi if you need to know.
Oh my goodness, I just made this recipe and you have made my gluten intolerant heart and stomach very happy! Delicious! I’ve never hears of soccer before but next time I make Indian curry this will be my “naan”. Thank you!
Ugh, autocorrect. Socca not soccer 🙄
Glad you enjoyed this, Ellie!
I’ve never even heard of socca before, but I’m glad to know about it now! Yum.
I was glad to see the comment reference to Farinata. One more note about soaking the batter that isn’t mentioned here. Traditional recipes call for allowing it to rest at room temperature for several hours to aid in digestion.
I leave my farinata mix in a covered jug in the fridge overnight. The longer it is left, the better the flavour and texture. Crispy on the outside and soft inside. I also cook it in an ordinary frying pan on top of the cooker, in a generous amount of olive oil. Works everytime,
I would like to see a video of the pan on the stove top while the socca is cooking. I made socca the first time you gave the recipe on POY and it would not hold together enough to serve. The flavour was fine, but basically it was a dish of large crumbs.
Hi, Sky! You actually won’t need to put the cast iron pan on the stovetop here. Just pop it in the oven beforehand to get it hot, take it out to add the batter, and pop it back in the oven. 😉
Being a Brit I don’t have a skillet, I cook my socca (half quantity) in an 8×5 Pyrex dish. It works pretty well. :O) If I was brave enough to experiment with oven temp and/or quantity a little it might end up perfect!
Thanks for sharing, Jackie!
Made this last night and it was soooooo good!! Couldn’t easily find garbanzo flour so made it in the vitamix which worked wonderfully (and so much cheaper). Make sure you let the edges get nice and brown like the photos- that will ensure the bottom is crispy. This is the best ever summer supper!!
So resourceful to make it in the Vitamix! Thanks for sharing, Robyn!
So what did you use instead of garbanzo flour? (Or did you make your own using whole chick peas in your vitamin?)
OMG I made this last night to go along with a charcuterie board and it was so good! The only thing that wasn’t just stellar was that I couldn’t get my socca to have the crispy edges (but I blame that on the terrible oven I have to work with right now). I seasoned the feta with dill because it’s what I had on hand and marrinated the tomatoes with some sunshine sauce I already had made. So so tasty! If the feta is a bit to tangy for you a little olive oil will temper that right out.
Dill in the feta and marinated tomatoes with sunshine sauce = 💯 💯 💯!
Comment: I’m willing to do song and dance for some delicious Italian food. Growing up in Brooklyn, I always had an acquired taste for delicious entrees made fresh from scratch. Now that I’m feeling nostalgic, I might try making my own homemade eggplant parmesan or Veal sandwiches in the oven and see how it pans out. Thank you Lindsay for another amazing food blog. 🙂
Delicious ! We cooked it on a BBQ and ate with salmon. Thank you for this 3 recipes!
It looks delicious. I’d like to try.
Hey team,
Have you noticed this?
https://sadhyphy.tumblr.com/
This seems to be a true copy of pinch of yum blog
Hi, Siri! Thanks so much for reaching out to let us know! We always appreciate friends of Pinch of Yum keeping an eye out. 🙂 We’ll take care of this. Appreciate it!
Oh, my goodness! This was delicious. I love all your recipes, and love the fact that they are flexible (choose your own herbs, choose what you want to mix with the feta.) That’s my way of cooking. I’m wondering if there is a way to cook the socca on top of the stove in the summer so as not to heat up the oven? Anyone tried that?
As soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I’d love it. My husband and I made it for a date night after the kids were in bed. We used fresh thyme and parsley. It was delightful paired with a glass of cab. Such a great recipe!
Sounds like a great dinner, Brittany!
FANTASTIC!!!
So good for a light lunch and a good way to use up those tomatoes and cukes.
I really appreciate all the great recipes here, it has been a game changer.
Glad you enjoyed this, Jennifer!
Delicious! Perfect for dinner on the patio!
Definitely!
I made the feta dip today to go along with gazpacho and a baked potato! It was a great combo. I used whole milk yogurt, rosemary and fresh parsley and some garlic for the dip.
Yum! Thanks for sharing, Kim!
O.M.G.! THIS. WAS. AHHHHHHHHMAZING! So fresh, so vibrant. My new favorite healthyish snack! Thank you for sharing this.
YAY! So happy to hear you enjoyed this, Beverly! Enjoy the peach cobbler, too!