Wedding soup is definitely an Italian tradition that I grew up with. The last time I tried to make the soup it came out lacking some flavor and a little watery. I played with some recipes and came up with what’s below, and it’s amazing! SO tasty and hearty – I loved it!
Italian Wedding Soup
(Source: Combination of my mom and Elly Says Opa!)
Meatballs:
1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, grated
4 T. grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp. salt
2 T. bread crumbs
1 tsp. dried basil
1.5 tsp. dried parsley
2 egg whites
Combine all ingredients and shape into small (1/2″) meatballs. I refrigerated mine for a few hours and it helped to set the shape so they didn’t fall apart in the soup.
Shredded chicken:
Place 1 lb of boneless, skinless chicken breasts into a stockpot and cover well with water. Bring to a boil and boil until completely cooked. Shred chicken and set aside. Empty water from stockpot.
Soup:
2 T. butter
1 small onion, diced
1/2 c. sliced carrots (approximately 2 carrots)
1/2 c. sliced celery (approximately 2 stalks)
1 clove minced garlic
12 c. chicken broth
Salt & pepper to taste
3/4 c. acini di pepi or other small pasta (I used orzo because we had it in the house)
8 oz. fresh spinach
Melt butter in stockpot. Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic, and cook until veggies are tender, but not too soft.
Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Turn heat down, cover and simmer for approximately 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Drop in meatballs and cook about 7 minutes. Add pasta and cook for an additional 6 minutes. Add spinach and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Add in shredded chicken. Cover again and allow to simmer for another 30 minutes or so. You can eat as soon as the chicken is re-heated, but allowing it to simmer for a little longer allows all the new flavors to meld together.
We enjoy eating the soup with grated Parmesan or Romano cheese sprinkled on top.
Tags: Hot Soups, Italian, Italian Cuisine, Soup
looks good!
Looks good!
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Hey chicka! This is amazing soup! GREAT recipe. Thanks for sharing. My sick hubby says “Thank you” too!
Yum! I’m printing this out right now. I’ve been looking for some tasty soup recipes to try. Thank you! : )
Wanted to let you know that I made a big pot of this soup yesterday and it was delicious! It is some of the best soup I’ve ever had. Seriously! Yum! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
Hi!! I just finished reading the entire blog (in 3 days hehe) and I loved the recipes and the way you write..got linked to this through Annie’s blog which I also love. Great going!! I am a beginner baker (only plain cakes and an apple pie to my credit) but would love to try all these wonderful things.
I’m in the process of making this soup and I’m at a stand still b/c I need acini de pepi. thought about using thin egg noodles but just a thought. Can’t do it. Almost messed up the broth. I had three containers of frozen stock. thought it was chicken. It was a pork stock. I was saving to use for a bean soup. Thank *** I’m a taster. I put that back in cotainers with the addition of the veggies. my kids thing the little meatballs are cute and delicious. will let you know the final outcome. Oh yeah, when I go to the store, I’m also picking up the chocolate to make the brownie cookies
Soup was delicious! Love it when the temperature is warm. I can taste all of the flavors then. I love making soup! Thank you once again for sharing a good soup recipe.
Oh WOW! I can’t wait to try this!!!
I just made this and IT IS SOOOOOOO GOOD!~ Thanks so much for this awesome recipe~
I would love to make this but I am the only soup eater at my house. Do you know if this freezes well?
Yes, it freezes wonderfully, I do that often!
This was a wonderful recipe! Thanks!
Thank you so much for this recipe. My whole family enjoyed it. I had to alter it slightly to be gluten free, but it was still wonderful.
I spotted this recipe almost a year ago and made it once during the winter season. It was a hit. So incredibly tasty. I am finally making it again today and wanted to both thank you for such a great website and all the inspiration as well as share that I use the Cooks Illustrated method for making the chicken from their Chicken and Dumplings recipe, which really enhances the broth flavor.
Love this soup! Second time I’ve made it now, and it’s so good. I do half italian sausage and half beef though for the meat balls, as I like the taste of the sausage. Thanks for sharing the recipe!!!