I’ve always enjoyed this hearty soup. It’s great comfort food with a flavorful combination of meat and vegetables. The meatballs and soup are both easy to prepare and the entire dish takes less than an hour to make. You can adjust the heat with the red pepper flakes and use fresh oregano versus oregano paste.
Italian Wedding Soup
makes 6-8 servings
Ingredients
Meatballs
2/3 lb Ground Beef
1/3 lb Mild Italian Sausage
1 lg Egg
2 Tbl Fresh Parsley
1 tsp Oregano Paste, or 1 tsp Fresh Oregano, minced
2 cloves garlic
1/3 cu Freshly Grated Parmesan
1/3 cu Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1/4 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
1 tbl Heavy Cream
Soup
2 tbl Olive oil
1 sm Onion, chopped
2 Celery Stalks, split and sliced
2 med Carrots, split and thinly sliced
2 cloves Garlic, peeled smashed and minced
1 tsp Oregano Paste, or 1 tsp Fresh Oregano, minced
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
1/2 cu White Wine
6 cu Chicken Broth
1 can Beef, 12oz can
1/2 cu uncooked Ditalini Pasta
2 tbl Fresh Lemon Juice
3 cu, Fresh Baby Spinach, semi tightly packed
Garnish
Thin Lemon Wedges
Chopped Parsley
Freshly Grated Parmesan
Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place all of the meatballs ingredients in a medium sized bowl and gently combine. Divide the mixture into 24 equal portions and roll each into a ball. Place meatballs on an non-stick baking sheet or in the cups of a 24 cup mini muffin pan and place in the oven for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the soup. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a stockpot or large saucepan. Add onions and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add celery and onions and continue to sauté until all ingredients are tender, about 3 minutes more. Add garlic, oregano, pepper, red pepper flakes and stir to combine. Sauté for an additional minute or two. Increase the heat and add white wine. Stir until most of the liquid cooks down. Add chicken stock and beef stock and bring mixture to a boil. Stir in pasta and boil for 10 minutes. Reduce heat and add spinach and meatballs and stir until spinach is wilted. Serve with lemon wedges, chopped parsley and parmesan cheese.