Faina with Chorizo, Blue Cheese and Spinach

A traditional foodstuff of Argentina and Uruguay is Faina – a flatbread with notes of pepper made from chickpea flour. It’s related to the Italian flatbread Faranita.

A great gluten-free option for cheese boards, fainá can also be served with toppings, though is traditionally served as an accompaniment to mozzarella pizza(muzza). It is typical to have a slice of muzza, with a slice of faina on top, and this is called pizza a caballo (pizza on horseback). It brings back memories of being teenagers in Uruguay and going to our local Pizza Bar to have some pizza a caballo.

Special ingredients

The only special ingredient that you might not see at your local supermarket is the Chickpea or garbanzo bean flour. Chickpea flour or besan is made from the ground pulse. Popular in Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cuisine, the gluten-free ingredient is a delicious alternative to plain flour. Use besan as a batter, a tasty thickener in soups, or a binding agent for fritters and meatballs. It can be found at most health food stores.

 

Faina with Chorizo, Blue Cheese and Spinach
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Fainá is a nutty, peppery flatbread made with garbanzo bean (chickpea) flour.
Author:
Recipe type: Flatbread
Cuisine: South American
Serves: 8 to 10
Ingredients
  • 2½ cups garbanzo bean flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 7 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (optional)
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups water
  • 4 small chorizo sausages, or 1 large
  • 1 cup shredded fresh spinach leaves
  • 4-6 ounces crumbled blue cheese
Instructions
  1. Whisk the garbanzo bean flour together with the salt, 3 tablespoons olive oil, parmesan cheese, and a generous amount of ground black pepper.
  2. Whisk in 1¾ cups of water until well mixed. Set aside for about a half hour, to let the flour absorb some of the water.
  3. Remove the casings from the sausages and roughly chop the sausage. Cook the sausage in a skillet until well browned, adding a tablespoon or so of vegetable or olive oil if they are sticking. Remove sausages to a plate lined with paper towels to cool.
  4. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. When it is hot, place the remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a 12 inch pizza pan, and heat in the oven until very hot.
  5. Stir more water into the batter if necessary, until the batter is just thin enough to pour. Carefully remove hot pizza pan from oven, and pour batter into the pan. It should make a thin (about ¼ inch) layer. Place in the oven and bake until fainá is just golden and crispy (about 8-10 minutes). Remove from oven and top with sausage, spinach and crumbled blue cheese. Return to oven for a few minutes longer, until the blue cheese starts to melt and the spinach is just wilting.

Faina

Go ahead have a go at making it and comment below to tell us your thoughts

Chau abuelas Silvia and Graciela

5 thoughts on “Faina with Chorizo, Blue Cheese and Spinach

  • July 5, 2017 at 5:19 am
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    Omg! Can’t wait to give this recipe a go! Looks so yummy 🙂
    Keep up the good work!

    Reply
    • July 5, 2017 at 12:41 pm
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      Thanks Maria for your support hope you enjoy cooking the Faina recipe. Try a slice on top of a cheesy pizza slice it’s the best

      Reply
    • July 24, 2017 at 12:33 pm
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      Hopefully we slowly turn you into a foodie just like us. Thanks for dropping bye, don’t forget to have a go at some of our recipes

      Reply
  • August 2, 2017 at 3:05 pm
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    Hello admin, i must say you have very interesting content here.
    Your blog should go viral. You need initial traffic only.
    How to get it? Search for: Mertiso’s tips go viral

    Reply
    • August 7, 2017 at 10:55 am
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      Thanks for the comment, we hope one day to go viral. Long way to go

      Reply

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