Italian Wedding Soup

A healthy, tasty soup for those crisp fall days!

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

¾ lb- 1 lb ground turkey or chicken
1/3 cup bread crumbs (regular or Italian)
1 tsp minced garlic (1 clove)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
¼ cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese
1 ½ tbsp. milk
1 egg
Salt and Pepper

For the soup:

1 tbsp. olive oil
½ cup onion (1/2 medium onion), minced
½ cup diced carrots (2 medium carrots), cut into ¼ inch pieces
¼ cup diced celery (1 large stalk), cut into ¼ inch pieces
5 ½ cups chicken stock
½ cup small pasta, such as tubetini or stars (optional)
1 bag of baby spinach, washed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the meatballs, mix the bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, cheese, milk, egg and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the ground meat and mix gently with a fork until combined. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and using two teaspoons, drop the meat mixture in balls onto the sheet. (You should have about 20-25 meatballs, they do not have to be perfectly round). Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.

In the meantime, for the soup, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the onion, carrots and celery and sauté until softened, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the pasta (if using) to the simmering broth and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the pasta is tender. Add the meatballs to the soup and simmer for 1 minute. Taste for seasonings. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook for 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and serve!

Notes

Makes 4 servings and count each serving as 3 proteins. If using pasta also count ½ carbohydrate.

Adapted from a Barefoot Contessa recipe