Passatelli Soup

Ingredients

9 cups well-flavored beef broth
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 lemon, zested and juiced
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon minced fresh marjoram
2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano

Instructions

In a large saucepan, bring the beef broth to a slow boil. In a bowl, combine 1 cup of the Parmesan cheese, the bread crumbs, nutmeg and lemon zest and juice and make a well in the center. Add the eggs to the well and slowly incorporate into the dry ingredients, until it comes together and resembles cooked polenta. (If the mixture is too thin, add a bit more grated cheese and bread crumbs.)

Transfer the cheese mixture to a food mill fitted with the large die. Hold the food mill as high above the steaming broth as possible, and turn the handle so that the Parmesan mixture is forced through the mill into the slowly boiling broth. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes without stirring. Remove from the heat and let sit 5 minutes. Ladle into soup bowls and top each with a sprinkling of fresh herbs and the remaining grated cheese. Serve immediately.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings