Muffins, French toast, pancakes, waffles... All reliable Mother's Day brunch items.

This year I wanted to mix it up a bit. I wanted something that was light and appropriate for spring, but still satisfying. And as always, it needed to be fast and simple to prepare.

I ended up going with a slightly more robust version of a classic Greek soup - avgolemono. In its most basic form, this soup is just chicken broth that has been thickened with eggs whisked together with lemon juice. The result is fresh, creamy and boldly lemony.

Orzo pasta or rice is a common addition, as is chicken. I kept the orzo, but ditched the chicken in favor of some lightly sauteed carrots, onions and fresh thyme. If you'd rather make it more substantial, add about 3/4 pound of chopped boneless, skinless chicken breasts at the same time as the onions. Saute until nearly cooked through, then proceed with the recipe.

To make this a perfect brunch, serve the soup alongside a warm buttered baguette, a fruit salad and some freshly squeezed orange juice (spiked with sparkling wine, of course).

Avgolemono

Start to finish: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

1 tablespoon butter

1 medium yellow onion, diced

1 cup shredded carrots

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

4 cups (1 quart) chicken broth

1/4 cup orzo pasta

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme

3 eggs

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

In a large saucepan over medium-high, melt the butter. Add the onion, carrots and garlic, then saute until the onions and carrots are tender, 5 to 6 minutes.

Add the broth and bring to a simmer. Add the orzo and thyme, then cook for 6 minutes, or until the orzo is just tender but not mushy.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whisk together the eggs and lemon juice. Ladle out 1 cup of the broth and drizzle it into the eggs while whisking. Remove the saucepan from the heat. While whisking the broth and vegetables in the saucepan, slowly pour in the egg mixture. Whisk until smooth, then season with salt and pepper.

Nutrition information per serving (values are rounded to the nearest whole number): 174 calories; 68 calories from fat (39 percent of total calories); 8 g fat (3 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 169 mg cholesterol; 18 g carbohydrate; 8 g protein; 2 g fiber; 1,063 mg sodium.

Food editor J.M. Hirsch is author of the cookbook "High Flavor, Low Labor: Reinventing Weeknight Cooking." He can be e-mailed at jhirsch@ap.org.