Italian Wedding Soup

I attempted making wedding soup this weekend for the first time.  I've been hesitant to make it...nothing quite compares to my mom's or grandma's.  After combining a few recipes online, this is what I came up with...

It turned out pretty tasty with three happy boys gobbling it up tonight.  If you visit this blog regularly, you can tell that I like to freeze a lot of meals.  The less time cooking, the better.  Therefore, this is a double recipe.  We ate half tonight and I froze the other half.

Soup:
-olive oil
-1 onion, chopped
-1-2 cups celery, chopped (about 2-3 stalks)
-1-2 cups carrots, chopped (about 20+ baby carrots)
-2 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 bay leaf
-1 teaspoon dried thyme
-1 teaspoon dried basil
-1 teaspoon dried oregano
-84 ounces chicken broth...this is 2 extra large cartons, or 6 cans of chicken broth of chicken broth
-4 cups water
-8 ounces orzo (or ditalini, pastina or any other tiny pasta)
-2 cups escarole, sliced thin (you can use spinach in place of the escarole, but I grew up with the traditional Italian version with escarole)
-Parmesan cheese

Meatballs:
-1 pounds meatloaf mix
**I can never find this so I make my own:
-3/4 pound ground beef
-1/2 pound ground pork
-1/4 pound ground veal
-3/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
-1 eggs
-1/8 cup Parmesan cheese

Mix meatball ingredients together and roll small meatballs the size of a marble. (If forming the meatball is difficult, cover and refrigerate first.

 

In a large pot, saute onion in olive oil. When the onion starts to turn a golden color; add garlic, carrot, and celery and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in chicken stock and herbs.  Gently add in meatballs.  Simmer lightly, until veggies and meatballs are cooked through (about 10 minutes).  Add in orzo and escarole and gently simmer for about 10 minutes until pasta is cooked.  Serve immediately. 

 

Garnish soup with Parmesan cheese before serving if desired.