Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs
There are endless variations on Italian Wedding Soups, but the main elements are meatballs and greens. The name indicates that the soup might be served at an Italian wedding, it is actually a mistranslation of minestra maritata, which refers to the “marriage” of greens and meat in the soup. I actually didn’t know that until i looked it up. I have always loved this soup. I also make it with pork/beef meatballs, you can just substitute this recipe for 1/2 pork and 1/2 beef. Sometime i use white beans instead of pasta as well. Either way it is delicious.
Today’s post is part of World on a plate, which is a blogging cultural exchange. On the last Sunday of the month, bloggers from all over the world get together to interpret a food through the lens of their home country cooking. Each blogger will produce a wonderful dish featuring the food chosen that is typical of her/his home country and will tell us a bit about the dish. This month the theme is turkey.
When turkey came up i was out of ideas. Swede’s don’t really eat turkey. I didn’t have turkey until i moved to the US. And actually i don’t really Thanksgiving turkey. I love ground turkey, and i love turkey deli on my sandwich But when it comes to Thanksgiving i LOVE all the sides, and i will pretty much eat everything except the turkey. That is why i always make these awesome ribs for Thanksgiving instead. But today i am posting about a soup that i love – The Italian Wedding Soup. Plus a great idea for leftover turkey, instead of meatballs use cut up turkey.
This year we are hosting Thanksgiving and i will still cook the turkey and taste a little but i prefer to fill up on all the other stuff.
I am really excited to host Thanksgiving this year. We are having a few friends over. I haven’t decided on the table decor yet but i am loving the white painted pumpkins. Also if you are hosting this year don’t forget to prepare some food to go containers for your guest.
On our menu this year:
Appetizers:
Cheese platter
Vegetable platter
Goat Cheese and Roasted Tomato Tart
Entree:
Turkey
Stuffing
Gravy
Mashed Potatoes
Fresh Green Salad
Brussel Sprouts in a mustard sauce
Roasted Beet Salad
Fresh Baked Rolls
Cranberry Orange Molds
Carrot Pudding Cake
Dessert:
Pumpkin Pie
Sticky Toffee Pudding
Need more Thanksgiving Recipe ideas?
Another good thing that it’s turkey theme today is that you can have lots of thanksgiving leftover ideas. I am sure this soup would taste just as good if you just cut up some turkey and put it into the soup.
Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs
Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
Meatballs:
1 lbs ground turkey (You can also use ½ lbs beef and ½ lbs pork)
1/3 cup dried bread crumbs
3 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 tbsp grated Parmesan
2 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp chopped oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 egg, beaten
pinch of ground nutmeg
pinch of paprika
pinch of allspice
Soup:
2 tbsp butter
3/4 cup chopped white onions
3/4 cup chopped carrots
2 tbsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp salt
Ground black pepper, to taste
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups white wine (you can also use water if you prefer)
1 (28 ounces) can whole tomatoes, drained and halved
1 cup cooked pasta of your choice (I prefer angle hair pasta, you can also substitute white beans)
2 cups shredded kale
Directions:
For the meatballs, put turkey, bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, garlic, oregano, salt, pepper, egg, nutmeg, paprika and allspice into a large bowl and use your hands to mix well. Use a teaspoon to measure out meat for even sized meatballs. With damp hands, shape them into 1-inch balls and transfer them to a large plate. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook.
For the soup, melt butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, garlic, salt and pepper and cook until translucent and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Stir in stock, tomatoes, and 2 white wine. Cover and cook 10 minutes over medium heat or until soup comes to a boil.
Cook pasta on the side al dente.
Add meatballs to the boiling soup and stir to make sure they are fully submerged. Cover and simmer for another 15 minutes over medium heat. Stir in kale and pasta. Test a meatball to ensure that they are fully cooked. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Serve immediately.
Note: If you are not serving immediately I recommend putting the pasta to the side or it will suck up a lot of the stock.
Adapted from: Whole Foods
One Year Ago: Pumpkin Fritters
Two Years Ago: Warm Apple Cider