In Arabic this soup is called "Beid bi lamoun" In Greek, it's called "avgolemono" both simply mean "egg and lemon". I've never made it, but it looks delicious in the cookbook. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- About 4-1/2 cups meat or chicken broth
- 3-4 sticks of celery
- 4 sm. potatoes, or 1-2 larger ones
- 1/4 lb. veal, lamb, beef, or chicken
- 1 sm. onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3 TBS. chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
- a pinch ground allspice
- juice of 1-2 lemons
- 2 eggs
- few sprigs of parsley (for garnish)
- lemon wedges (served with soup)
Directions
If you are using stock which has ben prepared in advance, dilute it with enough water to make up the amount required and bring to a gentle boil.If using freshly made broth, simply bring it to the simmering point. Trim and wash the celery, saving some leaves if you want to add them to the meatballs instead of parsley. Cut the celery into 2-1/2 inch
lengths, removing any tough strings, and add the celery to the broth. Wash the potatoes, peel them if you like, cut into large chunks about the same size if the potatoes are large, and add to broth.
2. Prepare the meatballs. Mince the meat and put into a mixing bowl. Grate the onion and garlic into a bowl. Add the parsley or chopped celery leaves, salt, pepper and allspice. Knead the misture thoroughly, then taste and adjustthe seasoning. Damp your hands slightly and form the mixture into walnut-sized balls, kneading each well until quite smooth. Keep your hands just damp and they will not stick.
3. When the vegetables are cooked, gently slide the meatballs into the soup and continuesimmering gently for another 15 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, beat the juice of the lemon(s, according to taste, with the eggs in a bowl. Add a ladleful of hot broth and continue beating, then add several more ladlefuls, beating all the time.
5. Carefully remove the meatballs and vegetables from soup witha slotted spoon. Put them in a soup tureen and keep warm. Remove the pan from heat and pour the egg and lemon mixture GRADUALLY into the soup, beating all the time. Return the pan to a low heat to thicken the soup gently, taking care not to let it boil or it may curdle. Pour into the tureen and garnish witha little chopped parsley. Serve with wedges of lemon, for thos who like a more pronounced lemon taste.
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Submitted 6/13/05.
Source: Middle Eastern Cooking cookbook
Submitted By: tc c
tcluvs@icqmail.com
Egg and Lemon Soup with Meatballs