Mini Meatball Soup

This soup is a favorite here. I know its hot outside to be eating soup but the man requested soup. Ugh...it's too hot for soup, I thought, but he rarely makes requests. So I asked him what kind of soup he'd like me to make. Mini Meatball Soup. Hmmm...I haven't made that in a while. No problem, dear.

This is a Rachael Ray 30 Minute Meal recipe but it takes me longer than 30 minutes. I don't chop quite as fast as she does. Maybe I need to get a set of RR knives. Ooh and maybe some of those cute ramekins. The orange pots are pretty cool, too. But I digress. This is about the soup. It's a quick soup that is really delicious and super simple to make. I tend to use more carrots and celery than the recipe calls for because I like hearty soups.

Both of the babies love the soup. I puree the soup so that it's nice and chunky and will sometimes add some pureed sweet potatoes to make it even healthier.

Stephanie enjoying her chunky soup


Mini Meatball Soup

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan in a slow stream
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 bay leaves, fresh or dried
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound ground beef, pork and veal combined
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Romano, a couple of handfuls
• 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs, a couple of handfuls
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
• 6 cups chicken stock or broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups dried pasta, rings, broken fettuccini or ditalini(I use multi-grain)
  
• 1 pound triple washed fresh spinach, coarsely chopped

Directions

In a deep pot over medium heat add oil, chopped carrots, celery and onions and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cover pot and cook veggies 5 or 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the veggies cook, combine meat, egg, garlic, grated cheese, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg.

Uncover your soup pot and add broth and water to the pot. Increase heat to high and bring soup to a boil. When soup boils, reduce heat a bit and start to roll meat mixture into small balls, dropping them straight into the pot. You are making meat dumplings that will cook in the broth. When you are done rolling the meat, add pasta to the soup and stir. Cover and simmer soup 10 minutes. When pasta is tender, stir in chopped spinach in batches. When spinach has wilted into the soup, the soup is done and ready to serve. Adjust your seasonings.