Pastina

My mother used to make this for lunch for me when I was a little kid, especially during cold Rochester winters. I remember her letting the bowl of steaming pastina cool on the window sill first so I wouldn’t scald my mouth when I attacked it. Though my mom used grated Pecorino exclusively, I switch between that and Parmigiano-Reggiano. With the addition of one of these cheeses, even low-salt chicken broth can end up being too salty, so use no-salt chicken stock, then salt to taste. Even better (for many reasons), make homemade chicken broth with no extra salt and it will taste so much better than store-bought.

Note that I rarely make this much pasta and soup.

1 lb De Cecco Acini di Pepe or Orzo

48 oz chicken broth (homemade is strongly preferred, otherwise unsalted)

Sea salt, to taste (none required if using homemade broth)

Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino

1. Bring chicken broth and pinch of salt (only if not homemade, unsalted) to a medium boil.

2. Cook acini di pepe or tubetti or orzo in chicken broth at medium boil according to directions on package. Stir occasionally to make sure the pasta specks don’t stick together.

3. Test for salt and optionally add freshly ground pepper.

4. Pour into soup bowls and add grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino to taste.