Italian Wedding Soup

Phew.  Glad we cleared that up.

Italian Wedding Soup, a close cousin to the Spanish Albondigas Soup where meatballs are cooked with rice within them, packs serious flavor given very little ingredients.  Since it falls into the larger tradition of Italian cookery, you can embrace the sweet basil from a leftover pesto recipe, the carrots that never seem to get eaten, and any small pasta you might have in the pantry.  Yet, just like with any soup, you can adjust the ingredients accordingly to what’s seasonal, affordable, and available in your kitchen, see my cook’s notes for how.

But you know what else “marries” or goes well–sposa bene–with this soup? A sore throat, a rainy day, a hungry stomach, or just an occasion to show someone you care.  What’s more tender than a bowl of soup for your loved one? Especially if they make the common mistake that Italian Wedding Soup has something to do with marriage.

Italian Wedding Soup

Like most soups, there’s an ease of versatility in preparing this dish: chicken broth or stock may be substituted with vegetable or beef, spinach may be substituted with kale or other dark winter greens, and the pasta, oh the tiny pasta, well, that can be just about any small pasta found in your grocery aisle

Ingredients:

–Meatballs–

*1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped

*1 egg

*1 clove garlic, minced or pressed

*1 teaspoon kosher salt

*1 teaspoon pepper

*1 slice good quality wheat bread, torn into tiny pieces

*1 tablespoon basil, finely chopped

*16-18 oz. good-quality sausage meat (here, I used Venison Sausage with Merlot and Blueberries and Elk Sausage with Port and Pear from Marx Foods)

*1 tablespoon olive oil

–Soup–

*8-10 cups chicken broth

*6 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and drained of excess juices

*1 onion, chopped fine

*1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped

*2 tablespoons basil, finely chopped

*8 oz. very small pasta (such as pastini, acini di pepe,  but can use Orzo or shell pasta)

*3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

*2 carrots, chopped into medium-sliced circular rounds

*1 tablespoon pepper

*1 teaspoon salt

*Parmesan, for dressing soup

1.) Prepare meatballs: in a food processor, add parsley, egg, garlic, salt, pepper, bread pieces, basil, and sausage.  Process until just combined (mixture should resemble ground sausage you might buy at the store).  Shape sausage mixture into meatballs based on size preference–I prefer smaller-sized meatballs that might fit easily into a large soup spoon, but any size works here.  If preparing a smaller sized meatball, expect 30-34 meatballs.

2.) In a large stock pot or dutch oven that you will use for the soup, drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil along the bottom and warm over medium-high heat.  Arrange meatballs and fry until brown on all sides and cooked all the way through (about 5-7 minutes).  Make sure not to crowd the pan and cook meatballs in several batches.  Transfer cooked meatballs to a plate lined with paper towels.

3.) Prepare soup: in the same pot, add onions and carrots and cook down until tender in the rendered juices from the meatballs (about 6 minutes).  Add garlic, stir until fragrant (30 seconds), and pour in the 8-10 cups broth.  Mix in parsley, basil, and salt and pepper.  Cover and bring soup to a boil.  Once boiling, add 8 ounces pasta (about half a box of pasta), meatballs, and cover.  Return to a boil and allow pasta to cook for 5-10 minutes.  Remove soup from heat, serve with sprinkled Parmesan, and enjoy! Makes 8 servings.

–Helana Brigman

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