It's Not Soup Weather, But . . .

It's always a good time for Avgolemono. You don't know Avgolemono? Not up on all of your Greek cuisine? Avgolemono is Greek Lemon Chicken Soup and it is outstanding. When I get a chance to visit Marathon Deli and have a gyro - if it is Avgolemono Soup Day, I'm having some of that, too.

This recipe comes from a blog friend, whose blog I read. She doesn't usually post recipes, but this one was worth disseminating further. Enjoy!

AVGOLEMONO SOUP

• 6 cups of chicken stock
• juice of half a lemon
• 2 Tbsp water
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup orzo pasta
• meat from chicken bones
• black pepper and sea salt to taste
  

Put the stock and orzo in a pot and heat. Once it reaches a boil cover it and simmer until the pasta is al dente.

While the stock is coming to boil whisk the eggs thoroughly in a big bowl, not massive but eventually the bowl will have about 3 cups of fluid you need to be whisking around so it has to accommodate that unless you're fond of having this mess fly all over your counter. Mix the lemon juice and water together then slowly add it to the eggs as you continue whisking them. This is the part where you practice that slow adding and whisking at the same time. You're going to be doing a lot of that for this recipe. It's really important later on.

Once the pasta is al dente take the pot off the heat and remove 2 cups of the broth. VERY SLOWLY add this to the lemon/egg mixture as you continue to whisk. When I say very slowly, I mean it. If you go dumping all that boiling hot broth into your eggs willy nilly just forget it. Slow down! I mean add it drip by drip, seriously. It took me several minutes to add 2 cups of hot broth to the eggs. And don't stop whisking.

Now that you've practiced that you get to do it some more. Take that broth /egg/lemon mixture and VERY SLOWLY add it back to the pot as you stir the soup constantly.

After all the mixture is added back into the pot, add salt and pepper, toss in the meat, and reheat the whole thing on medium low heat until it SOUNDS like it's boiling but isn't actually having bubbles break the surface. Stir it occasionally. Once it sounds boiling take it off the heat and stir it gently.

Ladle it into the bowls, slurp it up enjoying the slightly lemony tang. Congratulate yourself on a fine pot of soup.