Soupe au Vermicelle

° Serves 4 (makes 5 cups)

This is my daughter’s and granddaughter’s favorite soup, and Claudine always asked her grandmother to make it when she visited us from France. It is made with the very fine pasta called angel hair that comes in nestlike bundles. Once the stock has come to a boil, the pasta cooks very quickly, so the whole soup can be prepared in a little more than 10 minutes.

• 4 cups Basic Chicken Stock or canned chicken broth
• 1 cup water
• 5 scallions, cleaned and minced (about ¾ cup)
• 4 ounces capelli d’angelo (angel hair) pasta or vermicelli in bundles
• Salt to taste
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup grated Swiss cheese

Pour the stock and water into a medium pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the scallions and cook for 1 minute. Break the pasta bundles into strings (so they don’t form a block as they cook) and add to the boiling stock. Stir to separate the strands, and boil gently for 4 to 5 minutes.

Add the salt and pepper to the soup, and serve immediately, sprinkled with the cheese, if desired.

Note: This soup can be made ahead and reheated at serving time.

Most of the time required to make this soup is spent waiting for the chicken stock to come to a boil.