Beans Archives - Strength and Sunshine

Gluten-Free + Vegan Chickpea Nuggets (Allergy-Free, Grain-Free)

October 9, 2017 by Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine 93 Comments

An easy and healthy meatless nugget that the kids will love! Gluten-free & Vegan Chickpea Nuggets that are top 8 allergy-free, grain-free, and have a secret dose of veggies too! A deliciously fun plant-based recipe for little hands at lunchtime or dinner!

You know how I feel about (chicken) nuggets. They are the best and you know I ate my fair share as a kiddo. They are totally a weekly staple for my brother still; you can’t blame hime though, nuggets are the best! Since I already brought you real gluten-free chicken nuggets last year on the blog, I thought I should probably develop a killer plant-based recipe too!Read More

Curried Black Eyed Pea Salad Sandwiches (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

August 9, 2017 by Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine 4 Comments

An easy healthy lunch recipe for any day of the week. Curried Black Eyed Pea Salad Sandwiches that are gluten-free, vegan, and top 8 allergy-free. Easy to whip up on your meal prep days and have ready to go in the fridge!

Who doesn’t love a creamy chilled lunch salad sandwich? From chicken salad to chickpea salad, they’re all always such a classic lunch option. We’re taking this one up a few notches though. Nothing classic here, but still all delicious. Picture a combo of black eyed peas, crunchy veggies, sweet grapes, and a creamy curried dairy-free yogurt sauce. You don’t have to picture it, you can see it, and go make it in a few minutes after you read this recipe!Read More

Healing Indian Eggplant Hummus

September 28, 2016 by Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine 123 Comments

A hummus that heals! This Healing Indian Eggplant Hummus is a perfect blend of roasted eggplant, chickpeas, and Indian spices like turmeric. It’s gluten-free, vegan, and fat-free, making it a delicious snack recipe for dipping or spreading!

Maybe I should call this “Baba Ghanoush Hummus 2.0“! The whole “roasted eggplant” thing is happening again. This time, we’re taking the Indian route. Tons of turmeric, curry powder, garam masala, you get the idea! Roasted eggplant really is the secret to ultra creamy dips and dishes without the “cream”. People either love or hate eggplant, but when it’s roasted and blended, there’s no way not to love it (you really don’t even “know” it’s there!)Read More

How-To Make Sugar-Free Vegan Marshmallow Fluff

August 8, 2016 by Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine 170 Comments

The easiest way to make sugar-free, allergy-free, vegan marshmallow fluff with an unexpected ingredient! This multi-purpose condiment & sweet topping recipe will become a staple and have you buying cans of beans just for aquafaba!

Breathe deeply! Your fluffy sweet marshmallow dreams are about to come true! Just when you (at least I did) thought all hope was lost due to all vegan, gluten-free marshmallows having SOY and normal marshmallows having gelatin, there would never be marshmallow anything again.Read More

Levantine Socca Pizza

May 25, 2016 by Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine 133 Comments

Combining Levantine flavors to create a delicious gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free, vegan pizza recipe baked in a cast iron skillet! Levantine Socca Pizza is the healthy exotic twist you need to spice up pizza night!

It’s here! The final pizza to celebrate unofficial pizza month! I’ve given you a bunch of new gluten-free and grain-free crust ideas and this one is yet another to add to the list! This one took a little bit of before-hand prep, which I showed you on Monday. The Baba Ghanoush Hummus is only one of the spreads you’ll need to top this Levantine Socca Pizza!

You may have noticed right away that I baked this luscious pie in one of my favorite kitchen appliances, my cast iron! It creates the perfect browned and flavor-infused bottom to this socca crust! And it comes off clean and easy (which is what we all want!) We don’t want to lose any part of our chickpea flour crust because it gets stuck in some terrible tragic pan!

Before I get too ahead of myself and assume y’all know what socca is, let me give you the rundown. Socca (also called Farinata) is a chickpea flour “flatbread” or large pancake. Originally from France (I know!), but seen mostly in Middle Eastern cuisines now-a-days. You just need chickpea flour and liquid to make socca, but of course, that’s just the “basic”. We will be making a much more stellar, heartier, and “pizza-crust-worthy” socca today!

What makes this socca more than just a thin flatbread is…..sweet potato! Sweet potato puree to the rescue for making a perfect pizza worthy crust that will stand up to all the luscious sauces and topping that grace this pie! The crust comes out soft and bready and the perfect thickness.

To make this pizza really shine, through a few different layers, here’s what you get. Layer 1: socca crust, layer 2: harissa, layer 3: baba ghanoush hummus, “layer” 4: eggplant strips and fresh cilantro! Is your mouth watering? Yes! You get to bite through all those lovely layers. It really is a pie of bliss! You can eat this whole thing yourself if you have a super appetite, or share it with a very trusted and loved friend (because you know…it’s PIZZA)!

I didn’t know what cuisine this pizza fell under, so that’s why I’m using the regional term, Levantine. This encompasses the Middle Eastern area of Cyprus, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Turkey. It covers all my bases for this pizza creation.

I hope you’re as excited as I am about this pizza! I think it may be my proudest “pie” creation to this point. It may have to do with the magic of the cast iron, the chickpea flour, the harissa, or maybe that baba ghanoush hummus. Well, I guess it’s just a combination of it all! So here you go; let’s get pizza making!

Levantine Socca Pizza

Levantine Socca Pizza

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Cook time

18 mins

Total time

18 mins

Author: Rebecca Pytell

Recipe type: Main

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Serves: 1 Pizza

Ingredients

Socca Crust:
½ Cup Chickpea Flour
½ Cup Sweet Potato Puree (or butternut squash)
¼ Cup Water
¼ Tsp Onion Powder
¼ Tsp Garlic Powder
Toppings:
2 TB Harissa (I use mild)
¼ Cup Baba Ghanoush Hummus
1 Small Eggplant (cut into thin strips)
2 TB Chopped Cilantro

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425°F.
In a mixing bowl, combine the chickpea flour, potato or squash puree, water, and spices. Mix to combine a smooth, thick batter.
In a well greased cast iron skillet, spread the socca batter in a 10 inch diameter circle (about ¼ inch thick).
Then spoon on the harissa and spread it around, next spread on the hummus, and finally layer on a few thin eggplant strips and sprinkle on the chopped cilantro.
Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes (mine was done in 18).
Remove and allow to cool before removing and slicing!

Yes guys, I used baby food yet again 😉 That stuff is just too handy and has the perfect consistency! Now, I hope y’all join me in grabbing your cast iron and making some delicious, mouth-watering, “omg-flavor!” Levantine Socca Pizza today!

So tell me:

+ Have you ever made socca? Funny story, I few years ago I tried to make a socca crust and it was such a huge fail! The entire thing just stuck to the baking dish and it was a mess. I made this pizza in its place. Lucky me, I finally conquered the socca pizza!

+ Do you have a pizza stone? I think I might want to get one. We have one, but it’s so “gluttened” that I obviously can’t use it 😛

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