Monday, January 19, 2009

Not Quite Avgolemono

In this post I'll assume that yesterday you 
1.  Read my blog
2.  Jumped right up and cooked my Stand Alone Rice
3.  Didn't actually consume all 6 cups of the rice in one day

So here's what you should make with the leftover rice!

Now, I'll preface this with a disclaimer that I've never actually had Avgolemono soup.  I've seen it made and imagined it, but when you become vegetarian at age 11 you miss out on trying some things (Not that I'd take it back for anything, though.  I can live without knowing what lobsters taste like).  

Avgolemono soup is a really simple traditional Greek soup made with just chicken broth, lemon juice, rice, eggs, and pepper.  I know... eggs in soup sounds really weird, right?  They give the soup a creamy texture, though.  It's not like an egg sunny side up or scrambled in the soup [shudder].  

Anyways, the creamy rice part of this soup remindes me of a congee, an Asian rice porridge that can be sweet or savory.  It is made by cooking rice for a long time in LOTS of water.  So I figure that if I cook the rice longer it can be the egg replacement and thicken the soup.  The amazing Earth Balance will replace the fat from the egg and then you're all set.

So here's my vegan version that may very well taste NOTHING like the original.  But it's super good!

Not Quite Avgolemono
Serves 2

1 1/2 cups Stand Alone Rice *
3 cups water or broth
1 no salt added bouillon cube if using water(I like Rapunzel brand)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp Earth Balance
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine rice, water (+ bouillon) or broth, lemon juice, and Earth Balance in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium-low.  Simmer for 20-25 minutes.  You may need to add additional water or broth to the soup as it thickens.  When done, the rice should be so tender it nearly falls apart and the broth should be thick and creamy.  Just a touch of salt and lots of pepper on top is how I like mine.

*I'm sure you could make this with regular cooked rice, it would just be a little less flavorful.  The subtle flavor of the garlic and veggies is really nice in this.  

2 comments:

allularpunk said...

i've missed so many of your posts! first off, that rice sounds yummy yummy yummy. i love a pilaf-style rice that has loads of flavor, so i'll definitely try this one out! also, the soup that it goes into afterwards sounds so good. i've never had that kind of soup either, so i wouldn't know the difference haha... and i have to say that i am super impressed with your sunday routine. i've been wanting to fall into the same type of routine on the weekends, but still haven't. michael works on saturdays, but i'm so burned out by my work week, that saturday is my lazy day. then he's off on sunday, and since we don't see much of eachother, we try to spend that day together. and then the weekend is over. i need to get motivated on saturdays!

aTxVegn said...

The soup sounds really creamy and good - and different! I thought your rice recipe looked great.

I make a pot of beans and usually a loaf of bread every weekend too. I do NOT sew or do anything crafty though.