Description
A comforting Italian Wedding Soup featuring tender, flavor-packed homemade meatballs and a rich, savory broth with acini de pepe pasta and fresh baby spinach.
Ingredients
- ½ pound 90/10 ground beef
- ½ pound mild Italian ground beef sausage
- ½ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- â…“ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 large egg (beaten)
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 garlic cloves (finely minced)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ small white onion (diced)
- 3 medium carrots (peeled and diced)
- 3 celery ribs (diced)
- 3 garlic cloves (finely minced)
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup acini de pepe pasta
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 3 cups fresh baby spinach (roughly chopped)
- Fresh flat-leaf parsley (chopped, optional)
Instructions
- Make the Homemade Meatballs: Add the ground beef, ground beef sausage, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, egg, parsley, garlic, salt, and black pepper to a large bowl. Mix until well combined. Scoop out 2 teaspoons of the mixture at a time and use your hands to roll it into a meatball. You should end up with roughly 48 meatballs.
- Brown the Meatballs: Line a plate with paper towels. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add half of the meatballs. Cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes, or until the balls are lightly browned on all sides. Transfer meatballs to the paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with the remaining oil and meatballs.
- Sauté Vegetables: To the same pot you used for the meatballs, add 1 tablespoon olive oil. Stir in the onion, carrots, and celery. Cook for 3-4 minutes over medium heat, or until tender. Add garlic and continue cooking for 30 seconds, or until fragrant.
- Simmer Broth: Pour in the broth, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned bits. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil.
- Cook Pasta and Meatballs: Add the pasta gradually while stirring to avoid clumping. Mix in the salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and meatballs. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and simmer until the pasta is tender, about 7-9 minutes.
- Wilt Spinach: Toss in the spinach and stir until well mixed. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until spinach is wilted. Serve immediately with additional red pepper flakes and parsley, if desired.
Notes
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To avoid soggy pasta when storing longer, cook the pasta separately and stir it in when reheating. Substitute acini de pepe with orzo or pearl couscous if unavailable.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 429 kcal
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 2325 mg
- Fat: 27 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 16 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 26 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 22 g
- Cholesterol: 92 mg