Chickpea Pancakes (Socca) With Roasted Asparagus, Spring Onions And Radishes

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/180F.

First of all make the socca batter by dry whisking the gram flour to remove any lumps, then whisking in the oil, salt and half of the water. When this is smooth, whisk in the remaining water. Cover and set aside in a warm-ish place, like a windowsill.

While the batter is resting, toss the asparagus, radishes and spring onions with half of the oil, decant onto the tray and roast in the oven for eight minutes. Keep warm.

To make up the soccas, heat the remaining oil in the skillet over a medium-high heat. Test the heat by flicking a little of the batter into the pan, if it sizzles immediately it is ready for the batter.

Pour in half the batter and carefully swirl the pan to cover the bottom evenly. It should be thin like single cream and have lacy edges when it hits the hot oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Carefully use a heat-proof spatula to loosen the pancake and flip, cooking a further 2-3 minutes. Two minutes on each side should give you a cooked but very flexible socca, while the three minute timings will give you a firmer crisper pancake. If you are making one large pancake in a 12” skillet the timings will increase.

Make the second pancake with the remaining batter, adding a bit more oil to the pan, if you need to.

Either while the soccas are cooking or afterwards, fry each egg in the remaining oil. Fry it on one side, putting a lid on the egg after the white starts to solidify, turning off the heat and letting the yolk cook in the residual heat. No messy flipping!

To assemble, place each socca on a plate, top with the roasted vegetables, some of the raw courgette and finally the egg. This is a very filling brunch, lunch or breakfast. Serve with something raw and slightly acidic, like a handful of cherry tomatoes.