Soppa tal-Armla
The Quirky Foodster Team
Ingredients
- Small cauliflower, cut into florets — 1
- Potatoes, cubed — 2
- Carrots, sliced — 2
- Peas — 1 cup (150 g / 5 oz)
- Onion, chopped — 1
- Garlic, minced — 2 cloves
- Olive oil — 2 tbsp
- Vegetable stock — 5 cups (1.2 litres / 40 fl oz)
- Eggs — 4
- Fresh gbejniet (Maltese cheeselets) or a firm ricotta-style cheese — 4
- Salt and pepper — to taste
Method
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot and sauté the onion and garlic until softened.
- Add the cauliflower, potato and carrot, along with the vegetable stock, and bring to a boil.
- Simmer for 15 minutes, then add the peas and cook for a further 5 minutes until all the vegetables are tender.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Using a slotted spoon, create a little well in the simmering soup and crack in an egg to poach gently, one at a time; poach for 3–4 minutes until just set.
- Ladle the soup into bowls, placing a poached egg and a piece of gbejna cheese in each.
Introduction: The ‘widow’s soup’ — a hearty vegetable soup finished with a poached egg and a piece of fresh cheeselet, said to have fed families when meat was scarce.
Cultural Background: Legend holds that this soup takes its name from a widow who, unable to afford meat, made a filling meal from garden vegetables topped with egg and gbejna cheese for protein — a story that captures the resourceful, produce-driven spirit of traditional Maltese home cooking.
Tips: Keep the soup at a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil, while poaching the eggs so they hold their shape. Have the cheese at room temperature so it softens slightly once placed in the hot soup.
Variations: Add chopped green beans or courgette for extra vegetables. Use a poached egg per person or one shared egg per pair, depending on tradition and appetite.
Storage: Refrigerate the vegetable base (without egg or cheese) in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
Reheating: Reheat the vegetable base on the stovetop, then poach fresh eggs and add cheese just before serving.
Nutrition: Per serving (approx.): 260 kcal, 14 g protein, 12 g fat, 24 g carbohydrate.
FAQs:
Q: Can I add meat to this soup?
A: Traditionally it is meat-free, in keeping with its origin story, though
Q: What can I use if gbejniet aren’t available?
A: A fresh, firm sheep’s or goat’s cheese, or even a
- Small cauliflower, cut into florets — 1
- Potatoes, cubed — 2
- Carrots, sliced — 2
- Peas — 1 cup (150 g / 5 oz)
- Onion, chopped — 1
- Garlic, minced — 2 cloves
- Olive oil — 2 tbsp
- Vegetable stock — 5 cups (1.2 litres / 40 fl oz)
- Eggs — 4
- Fresh gbejniet (Maltese cheeselets) or a firm ricotta-style cheese — 4
- Salt and pepper — to taste
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