Hey guys, took a bit of a break with the craziness of the holidays along with the kids being on break. I couldn’t find much time to get in a good post. But, have no fear, the kids are back at school and we can dive head first back into the culinary pool again. Today we are going to tackle one of my favorite soups, Italian Wedding. It has been a bit colder than usual, so a nice broth based soup sounded perfect today. Let’s get right to it.
First thing that we are going to need is to make our meatballs. Of course, for time’s sake, you are able to use premade meatballs, but if you have the time and are feeling inclined, make them from scratch, they generally turn out better. Also, you know what you are putting in them, and are able to omit something if you want.
Homemade Meatballs
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 eggs whole
- 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1/3 cup Italian herbs (parsley, basil, and oregano) finely chopped
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl and mix well.
- Roll mix into balls. For Italian Wedding soup, use about 1 oz of meat per ball. For spaghetti and meatballs, use closer to 2 oz of meat.
- Brown meatballs in a hot saute pan or in a 450 F oven. Make sure they are cooked thoroughly before serving.
In a large mixing bowl, combine all you ingredients except for the olive oil. You will use the olive oil to brown the meatballs. Mix the ingredients well. I generally taste the mix before I portion into balls. To do this, I pinch off a small amount of meatball mix, and cook it in a pan or in the oven. once finished, allow to cool for a couple minutes and taste your handy work. Adjust the seasoning accordingly.
After the mix is seasoned properly, portion out into meatballs. We want about 1 oz balls. I try to make them about an inch in size. After you are done portioning and rolling your meatballs allow them to rest while you heat you pan. In a large dutch oven or saute pan, heat your olive oil over medium high heat. When the oil is shimmering add your meatballs and brown them on all sides, this is a little tricky since they are round, but do your best. The caramelization will provide the soup with some added flavor and allow the meatballs to hold their shape in the soup.
Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup carrots small diced
- 1 cup celery small diced
- 1 each yellow onion small diced
- 4 each garlic minced
- 3 each chicken stock 32 oz each
- 1 cup orzo pasta dry
- 6 oz fresh spinach
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- parmesan grated (for garnish)
Instructions
- Brown meatballs in a dutch oven or saute pan.
- Add onions and garlic and saute for 3-5 minutes.
- Add carrots and celery and saute for an additional 5 minutes.
- Add chicken stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.
- Add browned meatballs, and dry pasta. Cover and cook over medium low heat for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender and the meatballs are cooked through.
- In the last minute of cooking add the spinach and season with salt and pepper.
- Serve and garnish with grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
When the balls are browned to your liking, remove from the pan. Dump out the hot grease into a coffee cup or some sort of heat resistant container and add your 2 tablespoons of olive oil to our pan. Add the garlic and onions and saute gently while scraping the fond off the bottom of the pan. All that goodness will provide more flavor to our soup. Saute for 3-5 minutes over medium heat or until the onions begin to turn translucent. Add your celery and carrots and saute for an additional 5 minutes.
Add your stock, you can buy prepared chicken stock from the grocery store or you can make some from scratch. I have included the link to my stock recipe below.
Chicken Stock
Bring your soup to a boil and reduce the heat to a slow simmer. Add your pasta and meatballs, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender and the meatballs are cooked through. Add your spinach in the last minute of cooking to give it time to cook. Sprinkle with a bit of grated parmesan cheese to garnish when serving. That’s all there is to it. This is a full meal in one bowl. You have your meat, starch, and veggies all in a savory broth. That is one of the main reasons I like soup as much as I do.
Thanks for reading, I have a nice menu planned for the next couple weeks, so stay tuned! A like, follow, and share would be appreciated. Cheers!
