We have had quite the cold spell recently, and what better to make on a freezing cold day than soup. It is such a comforting food that warms the soul. The other day as I was hunkered down in my house I made a batch of this delicious hearty soup. It is very easy to make and the only time consuming aspect is making the meatballs. I use ground turkey for my meatballs but you can substitute ground beef if you prefer.
I made a batch of my childhood favorite, Popovers for Piglet, to go along with the soup and I had a very happy family at dinner. Have you tried Piglet’s Popovers yet? Here is the link to the recipe if you haven’t:
https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/category/recipes/breads/popovers-for-piglet/
Now on to make this wonderful soup!
Ingredients for meatballs:
1/2 lb. ground turkey or beef
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
Salt and pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
Additional ingredients:
6 cups chicken broth
6 oz. fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1 cup uncooked orzo or other small pasta
Grated parmesan cheese
These are the same meatballs I make anytime I make meatballs. When I make them to cook in red sauce I use a full pound of turkey and double the other ingredients. For this soup we only need half a pound of turkey to make plenty of meatballs.
Meatballs are one of those recipes I have been making for so long without measurements that it is difficult for me to say exactly how much salt, pepper, and garlic powder I use as I just sprinkle it in. The same goes with bread crumbs, but for this recipe I used about 1/4 cup, maybe a little more.
For the meatballs combine all of the meatball ingredients well in a mixing bowl.
Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan. Shape the meat mixture into small bite size meatballs and add to the pan and brown on all sides.
You aren’t trying to completely cook the meatballs, just giving them a nice browning on the outside. Once browned put them on a plate lined with paper towels to remove the excess grease.
Remove the stems from the spinach and roughly give it a chopping.
When you are ready to make the soup bring the chicken broth to a boil. Season the broth with some pepper to taste. Chicken broth already has quite a bit of sodium so I prefer not to add salt to the broth. There is so much flavor in the meatballs that the soup doesn’t need anything other than the pepper.
Add the meatballs, chopped spinach, and uncooked orzo to the broth and continue boiling for 10 minutes.
That’s it! Your delicious soup is ready to eat.
Once you ladle the soup into bowls top with a little grated parmesan cheese. Yum!
Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 lb. ground turkey or beef
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- salt and pepper
- 6 oz. fresh spinach, chopped
- 1 cup orzo, uncooked
- 6 cups chicken broth
Instructions
- Combine turkey, egg, breadcrumbs, grated cheese, garlic powder, salt, and pepper well in a mixing bowl.
- Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan. Shape the meat mixture into small bite size meatballs and add to the pan and brown on all sides. Once browned put them on a plate lined with paper towels to remove the excess grease.
- Remove the stems from the spinach and roughly give it a chopping.
- Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Season broth with pepper to taste.
- Add the meatballs, chopped spinach, and uncooked orzo to the broth and continue boiling for 10 minutes.
- Serve topped with parmesan cheese.