Typical of the Northwestern part of Italy (Piedmont, Liguria and northern Tuscany), the name Farinata used to designate all recipes made with different flours and liquids, boiled until cooked and condensed, such as Polenta. Today, though, it refers to a very specific recipe made with chickpea flour, water, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Ideally, Farinata should be cooked in a wood-burning oven, and that’s why it’s served in many Pizzerias. However, if you warm up your regular oven well in advance, the result is almost as good.
Farinata makes a very tasty, original appetizer or a nutritious snack. It can also be served as a side dish in a rustic meal.
Not only it’s delicious but also gluten-free!
Ingredients:
(serves 6) F W Sp V B Gf
- 3 cups of chickpea flour
- ½ cup of olive oil
- 6 cups of water
- 2 tsp. of salt
- Freshly ground pepper
Put the flour in a big bowl, make a hole in its center and start adding the water a little at a time, stirring well to avoid any lumps.
Mix slowly and with care so that the result is a very homogeneous mixture. Add the salt and let the farinata rest all night in the bowl. The following morning remove any foam that has formed on its surface.The mixture might seem too liquid but it will solidify once you cook it.
Warm the oven at 480 F.
Pour the olive oil on a baking sheet and start adding the farinata mixture, one ladle at a time, mixing it with the oil. Move the bottom of the ladle with circular movements, so that the oil blends with the flour mixture.
Transfer the baking sheet into the hot oven (it’s very easy to spill the mixture, so be extra careful) and cook for 30 minutes, or until the surface of the farinata turns golden and wrinkled.
Serve warm.
Farinata’s thickness depends on your taste, but I like it better when it’s thin (about ¼ inch) and well cooked, but still soft.
It can be aromatized by sprinkling its surface with rosemary before putting it in the oven, or by adding some caramelized onions and black Kalamata olives after cooking it.