Flu season has begun and if the coughing and sneezing at work is any indication – it’s going to be a doozy.  One must jump into action the moment early symptoms appear, so along with your vitamins and echinacea tea, I offer you my grandmother’s recipe for avgolemono soup.  From Greek “avgo – lemono” translates to “egg – lemon”, and is used as both a soup and as part of stew-type dishes.

Traditionally the soup is made with chicken broth in which rice or orzo pasta has been cooked, along with pieces of meat (usually chicken), before a mixture of eggs and lemon juice is added.  The consistency varies from broth to thick, and most important is that the broth be removed from the heat before the eggs / lemon juice are added.  My favorite recipe is my mother’s, which she has refined so that it can be made quickly.  It’s a broth version with just the right amount of lemon juice to make it – well – lemony.

So with this, I’m going to bid you a healthy winter season as I take a few months off from blogging.  See you in the new year and stay well.

– Doreen   

Avgolemono Soup

1 46-ounce can chicken broth plus 1 14-ounce can (total of 60 ounces chicken broth)
1/2 to 3/4 cup orzo pasta 
3 eggs
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1-1/2 lemons or to taste)

In a pot over medium-high heat, bring chicken broth to a boil and then add the orzo (or rice).  Lower heat to simmer and cook the orzo until al dente.  In a bowl, combine the lemon juice and eggs, and whisk until well blended.

When the orzo is done, turn off the heat and slowly ladle 1 cup of hot broth into the egg / lemon mixture, stirring constantly to dissipate the heat so the mixture doesn’t curdle.  Alternately, you can let the initial cup of broth cool for a minute or two before adding.  Continue ladling the broth into the egg / lemon mixture, stirring constantly, until most of it has been added.  Slowly pour the egg / lemon / broth mixture back into the pot and serve.

Any remaining soup refrigerates well but may curdle a bit when rewarming.  This does not affect the taste at all.  Typically we add leftover chicken when making the soup but you can certainly make a chicken stock, adding the cooked chicken back into the soup.

Serves 4.