Italian Wedding Soup

Name: Italian Wedding Soup
Total time: 1200 s
Yield: 5 to 6 servings
Cuisine: South African
Ingredients: 1/2 pound ground beef (I used 85% lean); 1 large egg; 1 Tablespoon milk; 2 Tablespoons bread crumbs; 2 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese; 1/4 cup finely diced sweet onion; 1/2 teaspoon dried basil; 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder; 6 cups chicken broth (I used broth with low sodium); 1 cup beef broth; 1 cup diced carrots; 1/2 cup sliced onion; ~3 or 4 cups baby spinach; 1 cup small pasta (I used small soup shells, but orzo, ditalini, or acini de pepe would all work); Salt and pepper to taste; Parmesan cheese and parsley for topping/garnish when serving, if desired

Chris Gan @ChrissyAlpha

This is a tasty soup that is fairly quick and easy to prepare. Well, not as quick as popping open a can of soup, but probably healthier! 😁. You can endlessly customize by using different ground meats for the meatballs, different broths, and even different veggies. But, the classic Italian wedding soup always has meatballs and greens.
This recipe was modified from Allrecipes.com

Chris Gan @ChrissyAlpha

Saved

Ingredients

~20 minutes

5 to 6 servings

For Meatballs
1/2 poundground beef (I used 85% lean)
1large egg
1 Tablespoonmilk
2 Tablespoonsbread crumbs
2 Tablespoonsgrated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cupfinely diced sweet onion
1/2 teaspoondried basil
1/2 teaspoongarlic powder
Soup
6 cupschicken broth (I used broth with low sodium)
1 cupbeef broth
1 cupdiced carrots
1/2 cupsliced onion
~3 or 4 cups baby spinach
1 cupsmall pasta (I used small soup shells, but orzo, ditalini, or acini de pepe would all work)
Salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese and parsley for topping/garnish when serving, if desired

Saved

Steps

~20 minutes

1

Whisk the egg and milk well, then stir in the basil, garlic powder, and onion.
2

Stir in the Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs until you get a nice paste.
3

Mix the ground beef in by hand until everything is well distributed.
4

Shape meat mixture into mini meatballs (about 3/4” across). Place the meatballs onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets
5

Bake at 400°F for about 6 minutes. It’s okay if they are slightly underdone, because they will finish cooking in the soup.
6

Chop the carrots finely and slice the onion into small pieces.
7

Pour the chicken and beef broth into a large pot, cover, then heat to boiling. Add carrot and onion, then reduce to a simmer. Cook, covered, for 5 minutes
8

Add the meatballs, cover, and simmer for another 5 minutes.
9

Check the doneness of the carrots. If they are soft to your liking, add a few handfuls of baby spinach. Turn off the heat, and allow the spinach to cook in the hot liquid.
10

Cook the pasta separately according to package directions, then add it to the soup. Check the taste and season as necessary. Serve topped with grated Parmesan and/or parsley, if desired.