See? Gram flour isn't just for Indian food.
If you thought all Italian food had to be veganized in order to fit your vegan diet, think again. Many Italian dishes are naturally vegan, but that's not the Italian food that's sold in your corner Italian restaurant—unless you're in Italy. Different regions of Italy have special ways of cooking their lovely vegetables and legumes. In Liguria in northern Italy, chickpea flour, called gram flour, is made into an egg-less batter, baked into a flat cake, and served as an appetizer or part of a main dish.
I served mine with a bowl of thick ribollita soup, and a side dollop of spinach yogurt. You could omit the yogurt (I made mine with soy yogurt) or try another condiment. But do remember to start well in advance of serving: the mixture needs to sit for a couple of hours, then spend 20 minutes in a hot oven, plus another 15 minutes to cool enough to slice.
Since chickpea flour is high in protein (try to ignore the f-word) you could think of it as the protein portion of your meal. And when you're asked for the zillionth time "where do vegans get their protein?" you could just say "From farinata."*
That should shut them up, since they won't want to admit they haven't a clue what farinata is. They'll just imagine you eating some sort of vegan flank steak and quit worrying about where you get your lovely protein.
•Not to be confused with focaccia, of course.
Here's how:
Farinata with Red Onion
1 generous cup gram flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup warm water
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
Mix the gram flour and the salt in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in the water, whisking all the while. Whisk for about a minute. Cover and let sit for 2 hours. Before baking, skim off the foam from the surface with a slotted spoon.
Heat the oven to 400F/230C. Pour the olive oil into a cast iron skillet, or a non-stick baking pan (9 or 10 inch round will do). Heat the pan with the oil briefly, then remove from oven. Pour in the gram flour mixture. Sprinkle the onions on top. (Don't worry if the oil comes up around the sides.)
Bake for 20 minutes, or until the top begins to dry and turn golden brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 or 15 minutes. You may remove the whole thing to a plate or serve from the pan, with Spinach Yogurt on the side, if desired.
Spinach Yogurt
1 cup plain soy yogurt
1 clove garlic, finely minced
2 good handfuls fresh spinach
Bring a pot of water to boil. Drop in the spinach, and let it wilt in the water—no more than a minute. Drain, and loosely chop the spinach. Stir into the yogurt along with the garlic. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
