Italian Wedding Soup with Mini Meatballs

 

Becky found this recipe online and sent it to me last week. So I made it on January 30th....and I'm here to tell you this is a great recipe. When I first looked at the recipe, I wrongly assumed it would be a big, hearty soup. Quite the contrary, the soup was delightfully light....and the flavors were bright and elegant.

The recipe I am sharing with you here is modified. I actually modified he ingredient quantities so that it makes four entree servings. Perfect for two retirees and leftovers. Nicole Keshishian's original recipe would easily feed eight plus....and had you making about 50 mini meatballs!

For the pasta, you can easily use orzo, mini farfalle or mini elbows. I used  Creamette Rings. Make sure you use small pasta as it only plays a very minor role here...you don't want to turn it into a pasta-heavy soup.

INGREDIENTS 

For the Meatballs

1 pound mild Italian Sausage, bulk

1/2 pound ground beef

1/3 cup panko bread crumbs

1 egg

1/3 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated

2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

For the Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 small onion, diced

1-1/2 celery sticks, chopped

1-1/2 carrots, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, pressed

1/2 cup mini pasta (rings, orzo, etc)

1/3 cup white wine

3-1/2 cups chicken broth

2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

1-1/2 cups fresh spinach

1 cup parmesan cheese, shredded and divided

DIRECTIONS

For the Meatballs

1. Preheat oven to 350º.
2. Add all meatball ingredients to a large bowl and mix to incorporate well. Form mini meatballs (about a tablespoon or so in size) and place them on an oiled sheet pan. Place in oven and cook for 15 minutes until browned. Remove from oven and let cool.

For the Soup

1. In a large pot, add olive oil. Turn burner to medium heat and add onions, celery, carrots and garlic. Heat for 6-7 minutes, stirring often.
2. Then pour in the white wine to deglaze the pot, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
3. Add the broth, lemon juice and meatballs to the pot. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low. Add the spinach and allow to cook for 15 minutes so the flavors meld and the spinach wilts.
4. Divide soup between 4 bowls and top each bowl with 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese. Then serve.

Wine pairing: Chianti Classico