Italian Wedding Soup
It has to be the flavor packed tiny meatballs....no actually it's the fresh spinach leaves and miniature pasta all bathing in wonderful homemade chicken broth...oh wait I'm certain it's the final swirl of egg and salty Parmesan cheese that makes this soup near the top of my comfort food list.
Ingredients
For meatballs...
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 2 Tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- pinch nutmeg
For soup...
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1 cup celery fine diced
- 1 cup carrot fine diced
- 1 thyme sprig
- salt & pepper
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup uncooked small pasta like Stars or Orzo
- 3 cups fresh baby spinach
- 2 eggs
- 2 Tablespoon Parmesan cheese grated
- Shaved Parmesan cheese for topping
Instructions
For meatballs...
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Combine all meatball ingredients, except turkey, until just blended. Add in turkey and mix to combine (do not overwork or they be hard meatballs instead of soft meatballs) and shape into small quarter-sized meatballs, about 50.
- Bake for 8 minutes on parchment lined shallow baking pan. They will be almost done, but will finish cooking in soup broth.
For soup...
- Saute onion, celery, carrot and thyme sprig in olive oil and butter until tender, season with salt & pepper. Add chicken broth, bring to a boil. Add uncooked small pasta – cook for about 5 minutes (gentle boil). Then add meatballs and fresh spinach, cook for 2-3 more minutes until pasta is tender.
- Beat eggs with Parmesan cheese. Swirl soup with a fork as you slowly pour in the egg/cheese. It will form strands of cooked egg – cook for 1 min. more. Serve in big bowls with shaved Parmesan cheese and crusty bread.