Grams Made Greek Chicken & Orzo Soup

It's Monday evening and we're at our son's house in Houston waiting for Grandad's pre-operative testing tomorrow. We have to be at the Texas Heart Institute at 9 a.m.

Nick returned from a week in Canada with his wife Marie where they snowboarded and rang in the new year. He's feeling a little under the weather so I cooked up a big pot of Greek Chicken & Orzo Soup. This is one of my favorite recipes. The first time I had it, Katy made it for us. It's thickened with eggs instead of corn starch or flour, so it's high in protein and low in carbohydrates.

8 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup of orzo
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 eggs
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
Salt and white pepper to taste
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

Roast chicken breasts in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes until done. Cut crosswise into 1/4-inch thick pieces.

In a large saucepan, bring stock to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and add orzo and parsley.  Cook uncovered about 15 minutes until orzo is done. Five minutes before pasta is done, add chicken.

Place eggs in mixing bowl. Whisk eggs while adding lemon juice. Whisking constantly, slowly pour a ladle of the hot stock into the egg mixture to temper.

Reduce heat to very low. Then, while whisking the soup in pan, slowly pour in the egg mixture. Soup should thicken slightly. Add salt and pepper and garnish with parsley.

Serve with crusty bread.

Grams Made Kalamata Lemon Chicken

This is one of the first recipes that Grams made when I finally learned to cook in my mid-fifties. It's still one of my favorites. I always keep these ingredients in my cupboard and freezer so I can always make this.

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
2/3 cup dried orzo
1/2 cup drained, pitted Kalamata olives
1 14-ounce can chicken broth
1/2 of a lemon, cut into wedges or chunks
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried Greek seasoning

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a 4-quart Dutch oven brown chicken in hot oil over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, turning once. Stir in orzo, olives, the can of broth, lemon wedges, lemon juice, Greek seasoning, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Cover; bake for 35 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink.