Everyone is sick right now. It's the end of February and the weather has been on a hellish roller coaster that has heads all over the world feeling cloudy and heavy. While we'd love to nurture our sort-of-sickly bodies with chicken noodle soup, chicken is expensive and we have vegetarians to nourish, too! Enter Provençal Garlic Soup.
It's an incredibly simple soup to make, and it requires few ingredients and less than 45 minutes. The main flavors are garlic and sage, and it's "garnished" with a whole slice of crusty bread and an egg that's been poached right in the soup. Sixteen cloves seems like a ton of garlic, but it's being boiled into submission, so it won't be sharp and intense. Additionally, the food world loves putting eggs on everything these days, said AZ Central, so it's a wonder how this soup hasn't quite caught on. We're putting a pot on tonight!
Provençal Garlic Soup with Poached Egg Recipe by David Tanis of New York Times Food:
INGREDIENTS
2 heads new crop garlic, if available, about 16 medium cloves
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
12 sage leaves
Salt
Pepper
4 to 6 eggs
4 to 6 slices day old French bread, lightly toasted
Chopped parsley, scallions or chives for garnish
DIRECTIONS
1. Peel and slice or roughly chop the garlic cloves. Warm the oil in a heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and sage and let them sizzle a bit without browning, about 2 minutes. Season with about a teaspoon of salt and a few grinds of pepper.
2. Add 6 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat, then lower to a brisk simmer. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning and adjust.
3. Ladle about an inch of soup into a skillet. Over medium heat, bring to a brisk simmer and, for each serving, poach an egg for about 3 minutes.
4. For each serving, place a slice of toast in a soup bowl. With a slotted spoon lift a poached egg onto each piece. Ladle the soup over it. Sprinkle with a little parsley, scallion or chive.
