HOUSEWARMING – Soup à la Marengo / Soupe à la Marengo

Ingredients for 12 servings:

• 4 kg tomatoes, very ripe
• 1 soup chicken
• 1 bottle of dry white wine
• some cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp sugar
• Salt
• 12 m.-sized eggs
• 200 g crayfish
• 1 bulb(s) garlic

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours; Total time approx. 4 hours 30 minutes

Place the tomatoes, chicken, and the contents of a bottle of white wine in a large pot and fill with water to cover. Add salt and sugar. Simmer for about one and a half to two hours. Remove the chicken and set aside to cool. Purée the soup and carefully strain to remove the tomato skins and seeds. Season with cayenne pepper, salt, and sugar. Prepare the poached eggs, crayfish, and chicken for the soup garnish. To poach the eggs, place plastic wrap over the rim of a coffee mug and crack the egg into the wrap. Do not crack the egg on the rim of the mug, or the plastic wrap will crack. Twist the wrap shut, making sure there is enough film attached to use it as a handle. Poach in boiling water for about 4 minutes. Repeat this process with all the eggs. Afterward, they can be easily removed from the plastic wrap. To poach the crayfish, fry some fresh garlic in a pan until lightly golden. Add the crayfish and fry for another 5 minutes. Stir well, making sure the garlic doesn’t overcook. Separate the chicken from the breast and thighs in smaller pieces. Serve the soup in bowls and add the garnishes. Enjoy! The Battle: The Battle of Marengo took place on June 14, 1800, during the War of the Second Coalition near Marengo, a village in what is now the Italian province of Alessandria, and brought Napoleon a decisive victory over the Austrians. This battle gave its name to Napoleon’s most famous horse, Marengo, and to a dish served to Napoleon by his cook on the night of the victory. Soupe à la Marengo is a version I created based on various accounts of the recipe. The Dish: After the victory at Marengo in 1800, Napoleon’s cook, Dunand, scavenged the town for ingredients (because the supply wagons were too far away) and created the dish from what he could find. According to legend, Napoleon enjoyed the dish so much that, partly out of superstition, he had it served to him after every battle. This victory recipe, which became famous and symbolic in France at the time, is said to have contributed to the spread of tomatoes in French cuisine. The horse: Marengo was a small, grey Arabian stallion, only 1.45 m tall. Marengo is described as fast, agile, brave, and bullet-proof. He was wounded eight times in battle. Marengo died at the age of 38. His skeleton is now on display in the National Army Museum in London.