Lemon Egg Drop Wedding Soup

The Christmas Season is coming to a close and its New Years Eve.  This past year has flown by.  Before the year came to an end though my kids came down with colds.  I decided to make one of my favorite recipes to give them some  comfort and relief.  I love Italian Wedding Soup and I love Greek Lemon Soup aaaannnnnd I love Chinese Egg Drop Soup so one day I wondered what would happen if instead of a traditional wedding I formed a love triangle?  The result is my recipe belowand if loving this is wrong...I don't wanna be right.  Its not rocket science.  I love it because I can make this in about an hour and its so delicious and great for what ails you.

I was feeling particularly "crispy" this week what with work, home, and dealing with this crazy world so being able to create a big bowl quickly and with items I usually have in the house was God send.  Bonus:  It has everything good for your immune system to fight the winter cold and flu.  I urge you to give this a try.  Mix and match the ingredients to suit your own tastes.  You'll love this creative cultural clash of soup.

So I started with chopping the garlic, adding coarse sea salt and pulverizing it with the side of my knife.  The salt helps to mash up the garlic easily. I heated my sturdy cast iron pot and added the olive oil.  I sauteed it for just a minute and added the broth.  This pot belonged to my husband's grandmother and its seen many a soup and stew.  I love cooking with it.

Next while the broth is simmering I make my meatballs for the soup.  I use ground beef but these would be great with ground chicken or turkey.  I use a very lean meat.

This takes so little time

Next while the soup is simmering shape the meatballs using only about 1/2 teaspoon of meat or whatever size you like.  When they are all formed add them to the soup so they can cook in the broth.  Yes, I cook my meatballs right in the broth and cook them thoroughly. They cook quickly since they are itty bitty meatballs.  Frying meatballs is fine but then this isn't so quick and not so easy either.  Why add a pan?

Once the meatballs are all in the broth let them cook through and then beat your eggs and slowly add them to the soup stirring constantly as you pour.  The eggs will cook in the broth.

Let the soup simmer for another 20 minutes. 

  While you wait set up your bowls and add spinach to the bottom of each bowl.  Slice the lemon wedges and have them ready too.  Oh yes, and your spoon.

Ladle the soup over your spinach, squeeze lemon wedges on top and after a minute stir to marry these flavors together to create the perfect love triangle of soup.  The spinach wilts and is still vibrant and green which gives you that iron and vitamin boost you need.  I guarantee this will become one of your go to dishes when you crave a great soup and a load of comfort. 

I wish good health and blessings for you and your family in the coming year!

 Lemon Egg Drop Wedding Soup

2- 32 ounce containers Chicken Broth

4 cloves garlic chopped 

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 lemon sliced into wedges

1 bag triple washed spinach

1 pound fresh ground beef (90% lean)

3/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)

1 egg for meatballs

2 additional well beaten eggs 

Heat olive oil on medium heat 

Chop and pulverize garlic with salt and add to heated pan and saute garlic careful not to burn it

Add the chicken broth to the pan and bring to a simmer

Mix ground beef, one egg bread crumbs and garlic powder thoroughly and roll into meatballs the size of a large marble (about 1/2 teaspoon meat)

Add the meatballs to the simmering broth and allow them to heat for five minutes

take the beaten eggs and slowly add them in a stream to the broth and stir constantly until all the egg is in.  Keep stirring for another minute.

Simmer the soup on medium heat for 20 minutes (after 10 minutes you may lower to medium low if the soup is simmering to vigorously)  Adjust the heat as you would any soup

Prepare a deep bowl by filling the bottom with fresh spinach leaves.  Remember that spinach wilts so you may use a generous amount

Ladle soup over the spinach and allow about one minute to let the spinach wilt.  Squeeze two lemon wedges over the soup and stir well

Enjoy with bread 

Note:  You may adjust the garlic, lemon and garlic powder to suit your taste.  I love garlic and I can't add enough lemon for my tastes.  Start with one wedge and see what you like. 

 Bon apetito, 安康

Ānkāngand & Náse kalá  

Caramelized Balsamic Pearl Onions

I love to cook with onions and I am obsessed with caramelized onions.  I've messed around with the process for a few years now and can produce a great caramelized sliced onion, onion jam, and today I came up with what I think is one of my best recipes for a caramelized pearl onion.  

I play a lot with many different types of food and with recipes.  I wake up some days thinking about challenging myself with making an irresistible version of something I've been wanting to try making for a long time.  The other day while shopping for Christmas Day meal ingredients I saw fresh pearl onions.  I bought two pounds and figured I'd make creamed onions out of them.  Well Christmas Day came and went and the onions weren't creamed.  Today I decided to try turning  those tiny beauties into a topping for the goat cheese I had in the fridge.  Random, yes, but that's how I roll with my creations.  One morning I woke up and pondered how marshmallows are made and by 2 PM that day I had three flavors for the kids to try.  Their friends were dumbfounded asking "who wakes up and decides to make marshmallows one day???"  That would be me.  By the way, check out the recipe for my marshmallows in future posts.  

The delicious difference with these caramelized onions is the spices that add gentle warmth, a bit of honey for well, what honey does and good quality balsamic vinegar to adds full bodied zing to this versatile treat. If you look at other recipes this one has a conservative amount of sugar.  

So I started by peeling the pearl onions which I really wasn't looking forward to.  Thanks to a quick trick it was a breeze.  I sliced the off the root end of the bulbs and put them into a pot of boiling water for about 1 minute and removed them to a bowl.  When they were cool enough to handle I pinched the onion top and pulled off the skin.  They popped out so easily!  

I added the sugar, honey, butter and spices and allowed the sugars to slowly caramelize.  This takes patience but really is easy and relaxing.  Just make a cup of tea and let the sugars do the work.

Stir occasionally until you have a golden caramel color and onions are coated and sticky and all that's left to do is add the balsamic vinegar and allow it to reduce to a sticky black gold that permeates the onions and melds into a heavenly gourmet goo.

While I was waiting I cleaned the untimely spill of coffee and balsamic on my wood floor...ugh

And voile...I let it cool, grabbed the crackers and goat cheese and boy was I happy.  I plan to serve these onions at my next party and pour them over a nice brie or cream cheese or just have them in an elegant bowl beside the goat cheese with an assortment of toasts.  I chose rosemary crackers because rosemary works perfectly with the warmth, sweetness and savory qualities of the onions.  This would make a great accompaniment to roasted pork.  I hope that you try and enjoy the recipe below...minus the spill...it wasn't planned.

Caramelized Balsamic Pearl Onions

2 pounds pearl onions

1/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup sugar

1 heaping teaspoon honey

1 tablespoon butter

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Saute the onions on medium low heat for 10 minutes until browned 

Add sugar, honey, butter, cayenne, mustard and salt and stir

Allow the onions to cook and the sugars to caramelize until golden and the onions are sticky stirring occasionally but gently so the onions don't break up

When the sugars are golden color add the balsamic vinegar stirring gently

Reduce the heat to low and cook down the vinegar until it coats the onions.  It will resemble molasses.  Pour onions in to a glass bowl and allow to cool to room temperature before serving.  If you make ahead of time you can bring it to room temperature before serving or warm gently before serving.  Serve with goat cheese, over brie or even cream cheese with crackers and toasts.  You get the idea.  

*Note:  If you want this dish to go from warm to caliente then add more cayenne to taste but I like that it just peeks out.