Italian Wedding Soup
Warm and comforting Italian Wedding Soup is filled with mini meatballs, a flavorful chicken broth, and lots of vegetables like carrots, celery, and spinach.
Servings 8
Calories 377kcal
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup grated yellow or white onion
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Soup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 & 1/4 cups small diced carrots
- 1 & 1/4 cup small diced yellow or white onion
- 3/4 cup small diced celery
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 9 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup dried Orzo pasta
- 6 ounces fresh spinach chopped
- grated parmesan to serve
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, ground pork, parmesan, bread crumbs, grated onion, eggs, parsley, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper until well combined. I like to do this by hand; do not over-mix
- Roll the meat mixture into 1.5 tablespoon-sized balls and place them on a plate.
- In a Dutch oven over medium heat, add the olive oil once hot. Brown the meatballs on all sides in batches; you do not need to cook them all the way through. Once browned, place them back on the plate, about 15 minutes.
- No need to wipe out the pan, add the additional tablespoon of olive oil, carrots, onion, and celery, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic until fragrant, 30 seconds.
- Add the chicken stock, scrape off any browned bits off the bottom of the pan, and bring to a boil.
- Add the browned meatballs and pasta and stir to combine. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so nothing sticks to the bottom.
- Stir in the spinach until wilted. Serve immediately with more parmesan on top.
Notes
Planning Leftovers? Cook Pasta Separately - If you don’t think you will eat all of the soup in one sitting, you may want to consider cooking the Orzo pasta separately and adding it to each serving.
The longer the pasta sits in the soup, the more of the liquid it will soak up. If the soup is stored with the pasta, you may need to add a little more broth to loosen the soup back up for leftovers.
Pasta Type - If you don't have orzo pasta, any small pasta, such as ditalini, macaroni, acini de pepe pasta, or orecchiette, will work well in this recipe.
Bring On The Green - Chopped kale or regular spinach can be used in place of baby spinach.
Bring On The Lean - Ground chicken or turkey could be used instead of pork or beef.
Freeze - Place the soup in a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Storage - Transfer the soup to an airtight container and place it in the refrigerator for three (3) days.
Nutrition
Calories: 377kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 87mg | Sodium: 416mg | Potassium: 713mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 5008IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 144mg | Iron: 3mg
