Egg Ribbon Soup & Sniffles

As much as I wish our family could really enjoy the weather right now (it is past 80 degrees here in central IL), it is proving rather difficult.  My kids have been sick since last Tuesday, and now I am afflicted.  I am quite certain that this is just a spring cold; or in Eli’s case, his 6th bout with croup since August.  No serious illness here.  But Oh!  How I wish we were all well so that I could be cooking up a storm!  Spring has sprung and I want to dive into all it has to offer!  Especially if that means we get to prepare and/or eat it outside.

I suppose it is good that I have been taking care of little ones instead of basking in the April sunshine.  My favorite place to be this time of year is our screen porch and it is presently filled with furniture cast-offs from our remodel.  Until we have a yard sale, it is a no go!

So in the interest of getting healthy, I made soup.  Now, you all may remember my previous musings on soup.  I really don’t like it.  It is my least favorite thing to eat, although I really like to make it.  I blame my parents for raising me as a ‘meat and potatoes’ kind of gal.  Although, ironically, they both love soup…

Anyway, this soup had always struck me as something that might be worth trying.  The other day, I remembered this recipe that I have had, literally, for over a decade.  It was cut from a magazine-not sure, but possibly Gourmet???-and has been floating around from Minnesota, to Wisconsin, to Hawaii, to California, to Minnesota, and now to Illinois.  Yummmmm.  And it was worth the wait.  It tastes exactly like I thought it would and my family agreed.  We, yes me too, slurped it right up.  I cooks up in no time and it was the perfect soup to get some nutrients into my ill family!  I know it looks weird, but it is crazy good.  You can of course make this without the fresh parsley, but don’t be tempted to skip it.  It adds a freshness that cuts through the rich broth and really balances out the flavors.  Parsley also contains Vitamin C, something we all need when we are sick or not, to help stave off infections.  Bring on the healing! Egg Ribbon Soup
If I remember correctly (it has been over 10 years), the original version of this recipe was from a chef that used to whip this up when she got home from a late shift and was hungry.  It was a quick and satisfying meal that required very little effort.  Rock on, random chef.  Rock on.

4 cans (7-8 c) of good quality, low sodium chicken broth
3/4 c tiny pasta, such as acini di pepe or orzo
3 eggs
3 T Parmesan cheese
fresh black pepper
3-4 T chopped fresh parsley

Bring chicken broth to a simmer in a large sauce pan and add the pasta.  Let cook until just al dente, stirring occasionally.  Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together eggs, cheese.  Add black pepper to taste.  When pasta is cooked, slowly pour the egg mixture into the simmering soup in a long thin stream, stirring the soup the whole time and forming little ‘ribbons’ of egg.  Toss in the parsley and serve.  Pass extra Parmesan cheese if desired.