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3
1
tablespoons flour
/8 teaspoon salt
Procedure
. In a small bowl, beat egg yolk with fork, add flour and salt, stir with a spoon to make a
1
dough. Add water teaspoon at a time to form a medium-thick dough. Let dough rest for 5
minutes.
2. Dust a small cutting board with flour and dump the dough near one edge. Hold the
cutting board over the simmering soup, pinch off raisin-size pieces of dough with a small paring
knife or a spoon and drop them in the liquid. Stick the knife or spoon in the hot soup
momentarily to prevent dough from sticking to it. When all the dough is in the soup, give the
puffs another 3 minutes to cook. Taste one to make sure.
Makes enough soup puffs for 4 servings.
Wontons, meatballs and matzo balls are more complex, and they lend a completely
different character to your soup. They dress them up like if they were ready for a party. In fact,
they can hardly be called additions—they metamorphose your soup to something else. These
have strong flavors of their own, but those flavors remain sealed inside the individual pieces and
don't alter the flavor of the soup. Other garnishes do change the flavor, for example liver puffs.
TASTINGS Simple garnishideas
Finely shredded lettuce, sprinkling of grated cheese, croutons, herbs, crisp pieces
of bacon, small edible flowers, slivers of citrus zest, slices of berries, tiny dollop
of sour cream, yogurt or heavy cream (swirl any of these in with a spoon so it is
only partially blended).
Another category of garnishes is decoration garnishes. They dress up your soup so much
with so little effort that there is no excuse not to use them even for everyday meals. They really
perk up packaged and canned soups. Anything edible that floats and looks pretty is fair game.
On top of everything else
Strictly speaking, a handful of crumbled saltine crackers spread over your soup is a soup
topping. French bread or toasted slices of bread, as in the traditional French onion soup, offer a
more elegant presentation. But a pastry soup topping is a true tour de force for any cook.
Preparation is time consuming, but you are guaranteed a spectacular impression. Mix and roll out
a baking powder biscuit dough, cut to fit individual ovenproof soup bowls, float each on top of
very hot soup in the bowls, then bake in the oven until the pastry cover is done and golden
brown.
You serve pastry-type soup toppings only on main dish soups, because, with covers
which your guests eat along with the soup, this course becomes quite hearty and filling. And the
soup must be able to survive the extra baking time the pastry cover needs. Think of the soup
ingredients. Will they become overcooked or harmed by the extra time in the oven? Any robust
soup that had been simmered for some time is a fine candidate.
play © erdosh 30
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