Avgelomono Soup w/ Baklouti Green Chili Olive Oil

Avgelomono is a comforting Greek chicken, lemon, egg, and rice soup (read penicillin). It's one of my absolute favorite soups to enjoy on a chilly winter day. I've taken a very standard interpretation of avgelomono and added a savory, spicy note of freshly made Baklouti Agrumato Olive Oil to the party. After tasting the before and after, it would be easy to argue that the ingredients in this recipe were simply line-dancing until the Baklouti showed up at the party and started break-dancing.

The green fruit of the peppers we crushed with olives in our mill marries perfectly with the bright lemon, creamy rice, and savory chicken here. It almost begs the question of why the original Greek recipe doesn't include this phenomenal fused olive oil in the first place.

Ingredients
8 cups good quality chicken stock or broth
1 cup short grain starchy rice
2 large shallots, or 1 medium onion diced
1 bay leaf
2 large fresh eggs
1 pound chicken breast cut in 1" dice
1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons Fresh (olio nuovo) Agrumato Baklouti Green Chili Olive Oil
copious amounts of fresh cracked pepper
sea salt to taste

Directions
In a large stock pot, heat 2 tablespoons Baklouti Agrumato Olive Oil over medium heat. Add the diced shallots and saute until soft, approximately 2 minutes. Add the chicken stock, chicken breast, bay leaf, and rice to the pot and bring to a simmer for approximately 30 minutes, or until the rice is very tender, and the soup is slightly thickened.

In a heat proof bowl whisk together the eggs and lemon juice. Add one cup of hot stock to the egg and lemon mixture whisking constantly. Add the egg and lemon mixture back in to the stock pot while stirring constantly. The soup will instantly thicken and become somewhat creamy. Simmer for an additional minute over medium heat stirring constantly.

Remove the bay leaf, taste and adjust the seasoning with additional pepper, and salt if desired.

Serve each bowl with a healthy drizzle of Baklouti Agrumato Olive Oil

Serves 6-8

Copyright 2014: Rachel Bradley