In the winter, I have a love affair with soup. It tickles my fancy and it warms my soul. OK, I don’t know about the soul part, but it makes me feel good and I love it!
I especially love soups that are full of hearty goodness. Lots of veggies. Rich broth. And, of course a little cheese doesn’t hurt either!
I have a particular affinity for Italian Wedding Soup. Maybe it’s my Italian heritage coming through. Or, maybe it’s because I love the little meatballs? It’s probably the meatballs! Until recently, I never made my own Italian Wedding Soup. I thought it was too complicated. You have to make a broth and then dozens of little meatballs. It was one of the dishes that I would rather order out. Until recently.
I took the best parts (according to me) of several recipes and combined them all to come up with this one.
Italian Wedding Soup
Compliments of It’s a Keeper
www.itisakeeper.com
Soup:
1 small onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp of olive oil
6 cups of chicken stock
5 ounces of fresh baby spinach, washed and dried, coarsley chopped
Fresh chopped parsley
Salt and Pepper
3/4 cup of Acini de Pepe pasta (or any small pasta)
Fresh grated parmesan cheese
Meatballs:
¾ lb ground chicken
2 tsp of grated onion
2 cloves of garlic, grated
¼ tsp of fresh grated lemon zest
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 Tbsp of fresh chopped parsley
2 Tbsp of bread crumbs
1 Egg
1 Tbsp of milk
3 Tbsp of grated parmesan cheese
In a large bowl, combine all of ingredients for the meatballs, mix well. Scoop one tablespoon of the mixture and form small meatballs. Set aside.
In a large pot over medium high heat, add the olive oil. When the pan is hot add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes, until vegetables are softened. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.
Add the meatballs and let them cook in the hot liquid for about 10 minutes. Add the pasta and let it cook for the required time on the package directions. Two minutes before the pasta is finished cooking, add the spinach and cook for two minutes.
Remove soup from heat and add fresh parsely and grated parmesan cheese before serving.
Is it a Keeper?
This soup warms my soul. And, tickles my fancy too. I just love it! I loved how everything is so little. The little meatballs. The little pasta. Mmmm.
The ground chicken meatballs poach beautifully in the broth. They are tender and light. And, I love, love, love the brightness that comes from the lemon zest! It wakes the flavors up.
You need to make this soup. That’s an order!
I’m just kidding. But really, you should give it a try. It’s not that hard to make and the payoff is so worth it!
The next time I make this soup, I’m making a double (maybe a triple) batch and freezing it. That way I can have it whenever my fancy needs to be tickled!
Enjoy!
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