Every now and then, I like to switch things up.

I wanted to make regular pizza for dinner tonight, but then I thought I would try something different. I haven’t cooked with chickpea flour in a while, but the last time I did, it was a success. So I decided to try this recipe for chickpea pizza, albeit with a few substitutions.

The original recipe calls for spinach and onion, but I had leftover kale from when I made lentil stew the other night. I’m also more of a shallot fan than an onion fan, so I subbed that in.

Everything worked out well in the end. I love the kale-shallot combo. And harissa is one of my favorite sauces of all time. It’s spicy and flavorful, and it takes dishes from “meh” to amazing. I had never paired it with cheese, but now that I have, I’m going to keep doing it. I see a kale-harissa-cheese panini in my near future.

The one word of caution I’d give for this recipe is to make the pizza as soon as you’ve made the batter. I left my batter by the side of the stove while I made the caramelized shallots and I found that it thickened up a little, which made it harder to spread into the pan later.

Another good addition (which I didn’t think of until later) would be sprinkling a little Maldon sea salt or drizzling some olive oil on top.

My sister was listening to this song today and I copied her. I keep hearing “dosas and samosas” instead of “doses and mimosas.”

Chickpea Pizza with Harissa and Kale (adapted from Molly Yeh) (makes 2 pizzas)

Ingredients

1 cup chickpea flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
a few cracks of black pepper
1 cup water
olive oil, to coat the pan
About 2 tablespoons harissa* (this amount may vary depending on your taste and how hot your harissa is)
2 large shallots, chopped and caramelized
1 cup packed fresh kale, chopped
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to high broil.

In a medium bowl, combine the chickpea flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper, and then whisk in the water. Whisk until you have a smooth batter.

Heat a large oven safe skillet on the stove over medium heat and coat the bottom with oil. Pour in half of the batter and tilt the pan to distribute it evenly. It will be about 8-10 inches. Cook for a few minutes, until the bottom is browned and comes away easily from the pan, and then flip to do the same on the other side.

Remove the crust from the heat. Spread on the harissa and top with half of the shallots, kale, and mozzarella. Place in the oven for about 1-2 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.

Repeat with the other half of the batter and toppings. Leftovers are great the next morning cold!