Fluffy semolina dumpling soup

Some old fashioned recipes deserve to be revived and appreciated anew. This is one of them. Made from a batter of semolina, milk, eggs, and cheese and poached in chicken broth, these dumplings are light and delicate and yet rich with com- forting flavor. This is a soul warming soup, just the thing to chase away the chill on a frigid winter night.

Portions: Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 cups/480 ml whole milk or half and half/half cream
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 2/3 cup/105 g semolina flour
• 1/2 cup/55 g freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
• 1 tbsp finely minced fresh flat leaf parsley
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 6 cups/1.4 l homemade chicken broth

Preparation:

Combine the milk, butter, salt, and nutmeg in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, then very slowly add the semolina in a constant stream, whisking all the while as you pour. Cook, stirring constantly, until the semolina is thickened and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. This should take about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour the mixture into a bowl, using a spatula to scrape the sides of the pan. Stir in the ½ cup/55 g Parmigiano and parsley. Working slowly and stirring as you go, carefully pour in the eggs, taking care to incorporate them immediately so they don’t begin to cook and curdle. Set aside while you prepare the broth. Bring the broth to a boil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Using two standard size coffee spoons or dessert spoons, scoop up about 1 tbsp of the semolina mixture and form it into an oval. This is easier than it sounds: you will see the oval naturally take shape as you transfer the mixture from one spoon to the other a few times. As you shape each dumpling, gently drop it into the boiling broth. You should have 20 to 24 dumplings in all. Reduce the heat to medium to allow the dumplings to simmer without the broth boiling over. Simmer gently for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the dumplings have floated to the surface and puffed up considerably.  Spoon the dumplings into warmed shallow, rimmed bowls, dividing them evenly, and ladle some broth over them. Sprinkle with additional Parmigiano and serve immediately.