Happy Easter and Xristos Anesti! In a rare occurrence, the western Gregorian and eastern Julian calendars align this year so that Easter and Greek Easter both fall on the same day–April 20th. As a California Greek, no Anastasi celebration would be complete in our family without the traditional Greek Easter soup–magiritsa!
Magiritsa is instantly addictive with its tart-tangy-sweet flavor unlike any other soup you will ever eat. The distinct flavor comes from the avgolemono (lemon and egg broth) that gets added in at the end, as well as a small amount of puréed organic chicken or beef liver that is incorporated into the main soup. Even people who swear they don’t like liver (me included) love this soup. Everyone who has tried this dish at our table has gone back for seconds and asked to take some home for thirds and fourths. Paired with the subtle sweetness of the tsoureki Greek Easter egg bread, it is a delectable umami dream-come-true that makes your body hum and sing with joy from the inside out.
This magiritsa is our family recipe brought over by my grandmother from her ancestors in Greece and I am so happy to share it with you now. Serve it hot with a big chunk of tsoureki Easter bread or good crusty bread, fresh feta cheese and olives on the side. Greek Easter is a time to celebrate life and renewal, but you don’t have to celebrate the traditional holiday to enjoy this delicious soup. Spring is a time full of promise—with so much new life, new energy, growth and expansion at your fingertips. Gather up your family and friends, set a pretty table and celebrate the joy of being alive on this beautiful Earth together. What an incredible gift it is!
We are bringing this Easter fave family recipe back from our archives to share with you. More on our Greek Easter traditions can be found in the original post HERE. Complete recipe is listed below.
MAGIRITSA GREEK EASTER SOUP
Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total: 2 hours 30 mins
Serves: 8 people
INGREDIENTS~
- 1 lb. organic ground beef, bison or turkey to your preference (lamb is traditional, if you can find it)
- ½ lb. organic chicken or beef liver
- 1 medium onion, finely minced
- 1 garlic clove, finely minced
- 1 bunch green onion, finely minced (use both the white & green parts)
- ½ cup fresh parsley, finely minced & well-packed
- ½ cup fresh dill, finely minced & well-packed
- ½ cup fresh basil, finely minced & well-packed (optional, but we add it to our recipe)
- 3 stalks of celery, finely minced
- ¼ cup white basmati rice
- ½ cup white vinegar
- salt & pepper to taste
- 10 cups water
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 6 eggs
- juice of 2-3 lemons (to taste)
- 1 tsp light olive oil or butter (to grease the pot)
ASSEMBLY~
In a large soup pot, heat 1 tsp olive oil or butter to coat the bottom of the pot on medium heat. Sauté onions until they turn translucent. Add ground meat and stir until it browns. If the meat renders any excess fat, spoon the fat out of the pot and dispose of it.
Cut off any tough tissue or fat from the liver. In a Cuisinart or blender, pulse liver until it liquefies.
Add liquefied liver to the meat and continue to heat until the whole mixture browns. Add minced garlic and stir. Add all minced vegetables and herbs (green onion, parsley, dill, basil & celery) and stir into meat.
Add 10 cups of water. Add 1 dried bay leaf. Let simmer on low heat for 1½ -2 hours on low heat.
Add ¼ cup white basmati rice and stir.
Add ½ cup white vinegar.
Simmer for 15-20 minutes, just until the rice softens. Keep an eye on the water levels and make sure it does not reduce down too much. Add a small amount of water if necessary.
Now it’s time to prepare the avgolemono (lemon and egg broth) to be added into the soup.
In a blender, beat 6 eggs until frothy.
With the blender running on low speed, add the juice of 2-3 lemons (to taste) through a strainer. Keep the blender running and slowly ladle in 2 ladles of broth from the soup pot into the egg mixture in the blender, one ladle at a time until everything is incorporated. It’s important to do this slowly so that the eggs do not curdle or separate. Turn blender off.
Slowly pour the egg mixture from the blender into the soup pot a little bit at a time, stirring gently until everything is incorporated.
Salt & pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
HOT TIP: You can make the soup base in advance, but wait to make the avgolemono until right before serving. After it is all made, the soup is fine to keep in the refrigerator and reheat for leftovers. But when first serving to guests, it is best served with the avgolemono freshly prepared.
Celebrate life this weekend! Ask yourself what new life you want to create!~
How do I want to expand? How do I want to grow? What seeds do I wish to cultivate?
Happy Easter and happy eating!
love,
Sirens & Scoundrels
xoxo
Check out MAMA GINA’S HUMMUS RECIPE to serve with your Greek Easter meal:
Check out NATURAL EDIBLE EGG DYE TECHNIQUES for your Easter eggs:
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Words by Christina Huntington
Original Family Recipe by Gina “Mama Gina” Trikonis
Photography by Sarah Prikryl
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Sirens & Scoundrels 