Italian Penicillin Soup
Just what the doctor ordered to help you feel better— chicken soup with tiny veggies and small pastina pasta. The Parmigiano-Reggiano rind* is actually aged parmesan cheese that melts into the broth to add great flavor. Any leftover rotisserie chicken can be added at the end. Always great served with crusty Italian bread.
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion (1 medium)
1 ¼ cups tiny dice carrots (2 medium)
¾ cup tiny dice celery (about 2 stalks)
3-4 cloves minced garlic
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
4 cups chicken broth (I use 4 teaspoons Better Than Bouillon with 4 cups water)
1 (1 ounce) Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese rind + grated parm for serving
2 ounces uncooked pastina pasta ( I use Acini de Pepe no. 78 by De Cecco))
Chopped fresh parsley
Prep ingredients. In a 5-quart saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Stir in onions; cover and sauté 2 minutes. Uncover, stir in carrots and celery. Sauté another 2 minutes. Sprinkle the veggies with garlic, salt, thyme; add bay leaf and stir all together for another 2 minutes.
Pour in the chicken broth. Add cheese rind.( It will melt nicely but not all the way and flavor the soup nicely.) Turn heat to medium low; cover and simmer 10 minutes.
Stir in the pastina. Partially cover and simmer another 15 minutes. Pastina will be twice its size. Remove remainder of cheese rind and dispose. Stir in the parsley.
Serve in individual bowls, topped with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese or just place the soup pot in the middle of the table and the parm wedge along with the micro grater.
*Parmigiano-Reggiano wedges can be found in Dunedin area at Whole Foods, Italian markets, and Publix (Boars Head).