Jenna’s (who is definitely not Italian) Italian Wedding Soup

I hope the title of this post is enough of a warning to Italian’s possibly reading my blog. I am not Italian, not even close. I have sauerkraut in my blood, not pasta. I crave beets, not tomatoes. I season with dill, not basil. So please be aware that I cannot tell you if this is even remotely close to what an Italian would make, but I did my best and Italian or not I hope you enjoy this recipe….

“Italian” Wedding Soup, makes 8 servings

Ingredients for Italian Wedding Soup

1 lb. box of pasta

MEATBALLS

1.5 lbs ground beef

2 eggs

¼ c. bread crumbs

2 Tbsp. parmesan cheese

1 Tsp. dried basil

1 garlic clove, chopped

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

SOUP FIXINS’

1 white onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 box frozen chopped spinach or 2 cups fresh spinach

1 c. diced carrots

2 c. beef broth

8 c. chicken broth

TOPPINS’, optional

Parmesan Cheese, shaved or grated

Lemon Wedge

~Begin by cooking your pasta in a separate pot. Do you have to cook it separately? No. Why do I then? Because I feel if the pasta is cooked before adding it into your soup the less broth it sucks up. You may enjoy it, but I don’t prefer my soup to resemble more of a casserole the next day because all the broth is in the lovely little pores of my now mushy pasta. You choose what works best for you.

Cooked Pasta

~While pasta is cooking begin making your meatballs. Mix together in a large bowl all the ingredients listed above for the meatballs. OK, here is another decision for you to make…brown meatballs in a pan before adding into soup, bake meatballs in oven before adding to soup, or add meatballs directly from mixing bowl to soup. What’s the right answer? Any of the above.

I chose to pan fry mine for these reasons. I like my meat to be browned a bit for extra flavor and I like to cook off a bit of fat before adding it into my soup. Baking them will basically do the same. And just adding them in will simply cook them all the same. Again, you choose what works best for you. If you chose to pan fry or bake them, do not worry about cooking them all the way through. You are just looking to add some color to them. They will finish cooking in the soup.

Another tip, I use my cookie scoop to form my meatballs. It is an easy way to make sure your meatballs are basically the same size.

Form mixture into meatballs

 

~Meanwhile, sauté your chopped onion, garlic, and carrots over medium heat in your stock pot with a drizzle of oil. Saute until tender. Once tender, add in broth and bring to a boil by turning heat up. Once to a boil add in meatballs, lower heat to a slow boil. Boil for approx five minutes.

Saute garlic, onion and carrots

~Next, add in spinach. I used frozen because, again, it’s what I had on hand. If using frozen, you can speed up the process by putting it into the microwave for a couple minutes to thaw it a bit before adding to soup. If using fresh, remove stems and roughly chop if you wish.

Thawed, frozen chopped spinach

 

~Stir in pasta. I used bowtie because I had it in my cupboard. Use what you like.

~Simmer on low for another 5-10 minutes just to let flavor combine. Feel free to add any salt at this point if you feel it is needed. Depending on the broth you use, you may need a pinch more of salt or none at all.

Simmer, allow flavors to meld together

 

~Pour a bowl of soup, top with shaved parmesan cheese, and a squeeze of fresh lemon. Enjoy…oops, I mean Buon Appetito!

Jenna's Italian Wedding Soup

~ by jennamvavra on January 16, 2010.