Italy's pastina: The comforting soup for the sniffle season

When everyone at home started sneezing and coughing, mum would set up a massive pot of broth, generously sprinkling parsley at the end. Italian mums have a similar approach to dealing with sickness and feed their grandchildren pastina, a simple, warming soup. It gets its name from the tiny pasta, which is its main ingredient. It's also called the "penicillin soup" because this simple dish helps fight infections. Italians know this taste well from family homes, and the younger generation still reaches for this recipe.

Pastina soup is a simple, quick, and healthy meal worth including in your diet. It's perfect for a cold, but it tastes good any time of the year. It has a somewhat mushy consistency and may remind you of egg drop noodles in broth. This consistency makes the soup so filling and nourishing. Moreover, you can prepare it in half an hour—perfect when you feel a cold coming on.

This recipe is even simpler than broth. As with Italian cuisine, parmesan couldn't be missing here. For this soup, you use pastina, a small pasta resembling grains. If you can't find it in shops, you can use other small shapes, like orzo.

Ingredients:

• 700 millilitres of chicken or vegetable broth,
• 230 grams of small pasta (e.g., stars, rice)
• 30 grams of butter,
• 50 grams of grated parmesan.

Preparation:

1. Pour the broth into a pot and bring it to the boil.
2. Cook the pasta according to the package instructions or until it absorbs most of the liquid. Remember to stir to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom.
3. When the pasta is almost ready, add the butter and stir until it melts completely.
4. Generously sprinkle the soup with grated parmesan and mix until the cheese melts.

For an even creamier consistency, you can add an egg yolk. Beat it before adding it to the soup and gently stir it in. Pastina soup is best served immediately after preparation. You can additionally sprinkle it with parmesan—you can never have too much. Enjoy!