Soup with Noques

The soup should be strained over the noques before serving.

Put four ounces of butter into a stewpan to melt, add four or five ounces of flour and stir it over the fire until nicely browned. Pour in gradually with the flour three quarts of rich broth, continue stirring over the fire until the broth boils, then move the stewpan slightly to the side of the fire. Warm one-half pound of butter in a basin and work it with a spoon until creamy, then mix with it, one at a time, the yolks of five eggs and the whites of two. Beat the butter and eggs until light and frothy, then sift in slowly six ounces of flour, work the whole to a smooth paste, season it with nutmeg and salt and add the whipped whites of two more eggs. Try the consistency of the above mixture by poaching a small quantity of it in boiling water, stir in a little flour, if too light, and if too thick then stir in a little butter. Divide the mixture into small equal portions and shape them into round balls. Drop the noques into a saucepan of boiling salted water, give them one boil up, then move the pan to the side of the fire and boil again until firm. Beat the yolks of four eggs with a little cream, skim the fat off the soup, put in the beaten eggs and stir them by the fire till thick. The soup should not boil after the eggs are added. Drain the noques, put them into a soup tureen, strain the soup over them through a fine hair sieve and serve at once.