Chick Peas

[Wolfert]

William Rubel, author of the magic of the fire gave me this recipe for roasting eggs in the oven for several hours, achieving the same delicious results as if he'd roasted them all night buried in hot ash in the fireplace. The egg shells and whites turn golden, while the yolks remain creamy.

It's really easy with very fresh AA eggs

Set the oven rack in the middle . Saok the eggs in warm water while preheating the oven to 225F. Set the eggs directly on the rack. Bake for 4 1/2 to 5 hours. You can tell when they're done: tiny drops of blackened albumin appear on the outside of the shell.

To remove the shells and keep the eggs intact , roll the eggs to crackle the shells, then drop them into a bowl of cold water tosoak for 5 minutes. Slip off the shells and serve at room

temperature with salt and pepper.

[mizducky]

Isn't some sort of slow cooked egg part of a traditional meal for a Jewish holiday? Amongst Jews from certain regions perhaps?

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A roasted egg is one of the traditional items on the Passover seder plate. See here for more info.

[greenwich st]

That roasted egg recipe sounds very intriguing!

In Brooklyn there is a Sicilian restaurant called Ferdinando's that makes a snack called panelle which is a kind of chick pea fritter served in a sandwich.

The Tuscan chick pea soup reminds me of a homey chick pea and pasta soup from an old book called Italian Family Cooking by Edward Giobbi.

1 1/2 cups dried chick peas soaked overnight or 1 20 oz can

3 strips bacon

1 large chopped onion

2 cloves garlic

1 cup peeled, chopped tomatoes fresh or canned

1/2 tablespoon dried sweet basil

4 cups water

1 bay leaf

1 cup diced carrot

s & p

1 cup small pasta

Parmesan

Wilt onion in rendered bacon. Add remaining ingredients except pasta and cheese and simmer 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Add pasta and simmer till al dente. Remove garlic cloves. Serve hot with grated parmesan.

[Jonathan Day]

Just to make sure we are all on the same page: Chickpea flour which used to be cheaper than white flour made from wheat is used to make socca in Nice and farinata in Genoa.

In fact,  in every Mediterranean coastal town there is a grainy snack food made with the flour.

Tunis: fenugreek flavored butter cookies called ghoriba homs

Tangier: cumin flavoerd, egg based pudding called karantika

Gibraltar: ditto

Israel: falafal

Antalya, Turkey: Hibes (a type of hummus made with the flour and tahini)

Palermo: panelle

Cadiz: Tortillitas

Please feel free to add to the list. I'm looking for more references

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And don't forget panisses (no relationship to Chez P., the Berkeley, California restaurant): the chickpea flour is cooked, rather like a polenta, put into a mould and cooled; the unmolded product is sliced and fried or grilled. These are thicker than socca. Many traiteurs in the general area of the cote d'Azur will carry prepared panisses -- you take them home, fry them, salt lightly and serve.

This link has a collection of recipes -- Socca, farinata (the recipe looks incomplete both in the ingredients and the preparation) and several recipes for something called calentita, both with and without eggs.

[chefzadi]

And don't forget panisses (no relationship to Chez P., the Berkeley, California restaurant): the chickpea flour is cooked, rather like a polenta, put into a mould and cooled; the unmolded product is sliced and fried or grilled. These are thicker than socca. Many traiteurs in the general area of the cote d'Azur will carry prepared panisses -- you take them home, fry them, salt lightly and serve.

We do that in Algeria too, those were the fries I was referring to.

[andiesenji]

There is a fast-food place in Reseda that has Greek and other regional foods that cooks the chickpea flour into a thick porridge, pours it into a sheet pan then cuts rounds out of it and deep fries them. They turn out like a rather thick chip and they toss them with salt and spices - as I recall they have three "flavors" one with a rather hot chile powder-reddish brown.

They have to be eaten soon after preparation otherwise they become absolutely rigid.

They have a drive-through and there is a window next to the driveway where you can see them making the "chips" and also the vertical grills that hold the meats they slice off for the gyros, etc.

I lived in Reseda when they first opened and at that time they cut the chickpea stuff into sticks, like French Fries but some where along the line they began making them into rounds because people like to use them like scoops for dipping sauces.

They also sell a lot of falafel in various combinations and have a lot of vegetarian combos.

[chefzadi]

My wife thinks she knows this place from over 20 years ago. Is it still open, if so do you remember the address or cross streets?

[andiesenji]

I am pretty sure it is still on Reseda Blvd, close to Roscoe. It is in a strip mall and as I recall, there is a Baskin Robbins at the other end of the strip. It has been quite a few years since I visited the place. They used to get a lot of business from the university students (CSUN).

[Episure]

My favourites are Chickpea Chaat and the ever popular Chana Masala.

Chickpea/Chana Chaat:

Soak the beans overnight and then boil with cinnamon, cardamom, star anise and bayleaf. Drain and toss in tamarind/lemon juice, cumin powder, black pepper, chopped onion and coriander or parsley.

Can be served hot or cold. On canapes, papadoms, toast points...

The image below depicts the pre boiling stage with a small difference - I've used dried pomegranate seeds in the tea ball to provide the sour element. I'm afraid I couldn't take a picture of the final plated dish as it got wiped out rather too soon.

Edited March 26, 2005 by Episure (log)

[andiesenji]

That looks lovely.

How much is there and how many does it serve?

[Episure]

That's a 5 litre pressure cooker and the contents will serve 15 side/appetiser portions of Chickpea Chaat.

Edited March 28, 2005 by Episure (log)