Recipe: Chris' Mageritsa (Easter lamb soup)

First off, please let me state that this is not the traditional Easter lamb soup that most Greek families would serve you.  The original recipe comes from my father-in-law, a very wonderful man who came to this country fifty years ago from Greece.  When it came to Easter, it was difficult to obtain the ingredients for traditional mageritsa without also obtaining the whole lamb for roasting.  He developed this recipe to accommodate a smaller group, for whom a whole lamb would have been silly.  Eventually he met and married my mother-in-law, and was able to celebrate Easter in larger groups again, but by that point he had become reluctant to use offal.  I, personally, am very glad that he did, because I really like this soup.  I love having the soup after the midnight service on Holy Saturday/Easter Sunday.  This year it was particularly welcome, since the weather had become cold and damp and our furnace was not cooperative.  It is filling and warming, and most of all it is delicious.  You will want to make this soup either early on the day you plan to first serve it, or possibly the day before; the flavors come together better with time. 

 

Chris' Mageritsa (serves 8; approx. $3.10/serving)

4 lb lamb shoulder blade chops (you can use 4 lamb shanks; this would probably bring the cost per serving down, but I couldn't find lamb shanks anywhere and had to make an emergency substitution)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 bunches scallions, chopped fine

1/2 stick butter

1 bunch fresh dill

1 bunch fresh parsley

3/4 cup basmati rice

3 1/2 qt water, plus more if necessary

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

2 eggs plus 2 egg whites, at room temperature

Juice of 2 lemons

2 tablespoons cold water

Equipment:

• Stock pot
• Hand mixer
• Pyrex measuring cup of at least 2 cups
• Mixing bowl
• Saute pan

1. Heat the olive oil in the bottom of a large stock pot. 
2. Brown the lamb chops on both sides.  You may need to do this in batches; the chops should give up enough fat of their own that you shouldn't need to add any oil. 
3. Return the lamb to the pot if you've had to brown it in batches.  Add the water and salt and pepper to taste.  Bring it to a boil, then simmer for 2 - 2 1/2 hours or longer.  Skim the surface if it develops a scum.  You'll know it's ready for the next step when the meat is tender and comes easily off the bone.
4. Remove the meat from the broth and allow it to cool a bit.  Keep the broth warm. 
5. Meanwhile, chop the dill and parsley together. 
6. Melt the butter in a saute pan. 
7. Add the scallions, dill and parsley to the saute pan and sweat until they are soft and translucent. 
8. When the meat is cool enough to handle, remove it from the bones and shred it finely with two forks or your hands.  The two forks works better. 
9. Add the meat to the saucepan and mix well. 
10. Add the contents of the sauce pan to the broth and return to a boil.
11. Stir in the rice.  Reduce the heat, cover and cook for 25 minutes. 
12. Using your Pyrex measuring cup, remove 2 cups of the soup from the stock pot.  Set them aside to cool. 
13. Separate the eggs.  (You should have four whites and two yolks.)
14. In your mixing bow, beat the egg whites with the hand mixer until they are stiff.
15. Add the yolks and beat.
16. Beat in two tablespoons of cold water and the lemon juice, beating until thick. 
17. Slowly beat the two reserved cups of soup into the egg mixture. 
18. Still using the hand mixer (I used an immersion blender), mix the egg-and-soup mixture into the main body of the soup. 
19. Heat the soup another 3 - 5 minutes to ensure that the eggs incorporate properly. 
20. Serve!  We usually squeeze a whole lot of lemon juice over this before eating.  It brightens up the flavors and cuts the richness. 

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