When you think of a classic Italian soup, you probably think of minestrone, but there’s another one that’s just as deserving of the limelight – Italian Wedding Soup! With tender meatballs and chewy balls of Acini de Pepe pasta but also plenty of veggies, it’s the kind of soup that will fill you up without weighing you down and it manages to do it all with amazing flavor. And our version? It comes together in a single pot, so you’re left with delicious soup and only one dish to wash.
There are some classic soups that take a rather large investment of your time (French Onion, anyone?) but Italian Wedding Soup is actually a rather quick affair – it should only take you about thirty minutes from start to finish. The meatballs are up first, and with a mixture of beef and pork, breadcrumbs, parm, and parsley, they’re as flavorful as they are hearty. Roll them up (bite sized is good here) and brown them up in your pot before you start to build your soup.
The fond (the browned bits that stick to the pan) from the meatballs adds some rich meatiness to the broth and veggies that come into the pot after it. There’s onions, carrots, celery, and garlic involved and some Italian seasoning too for classic flavor. The broth goes in and once it comes to a boil, the meatballs and pasta follow it.
Due to its small size, Acini de Pepe is a very quick cooking pasta, so this needs just about ten minutes of simmering to finish it off. Once the meatballs have cooked through and the pasta is tender, it’s just a matter of stirring in some fresh spinach and giving it a sprinkle of fresh parm before you dig in. It’s vibrant but comforting rustic fare.
One-Pot Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
For the meatballs:
- 1/2 lb ground beef
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
For the soup:
- 2 carrots, diced
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 3/4 cup dry Acini de Pepe pasta
- 8 oz fresh baby spinach
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Fresh parsley, chopped, for serving
- Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, for serving
Preparation
- In a medium bowl, combine the meatball ingredients: ground beef, pork, egg, breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup parmesan, garlic, parsley.
- Mix until just combined and roll into 1-inch balls.
- Heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown meatballs in batches, 2-3 minutes per batch. Remove and set aside.
- Add onions, carrots, and celery to pot and cook 5 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Stir in chicken broth, Italian seasoning, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium and add meatballs and pasta. Simmer until meatballs are cooked through, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in spinach, garnish with parsley and fresh Parmesan and enjoy!
Recipe adapted from The Cozy Cook.