Vegetarian Avgolemono Soup

This is a wonderful recipe for a hearty, yet refreshing, lemon orzo soup. Comes together quickly and makes for a very flavorful dinner! We eat it by itself with some crackers but it would be lovely to accompany a Greek leg of lamb.

Step: 1

Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, and onion; cook until veggies soften and flavors have mingled, about 3 minutes.

Step: 2

Add water and bring to a boil. Cook for at least 1 hour, or longer for a more flavorful broth.

Step: 3

Use a slotted spoon to transfer vegetable chunks to a food processor. Blend until smooth and return to the pot.

Step: 4

Add orzo and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes.

Step: 5

Meanwhile, whip eggs in a bowl. Add lemon juice. Add a few tablespoons of hot broth to the lemon-egg mixture, whisking constantly to avoid curdling the eggs. Continue until lemon-egg mixture is hot, then add to the broth.

Step: 6

Reduce heat and cook, without boiling, until soup thickens a bit, about 3 minutes. Allow soup to cool slightly before serving; it will become even thicker. Season with salt and pepper.

Per Serving: 179 calories; protein 6.8g; carbohydrates 27.4g; fat 5.8g; cholesterol 69.8mg; sodium 80.9mg.