Italian Wedding Soup (from Super Saturday)

(which we all now know means the marriage of perfect flavor!)

Submitted by Sister Twelves

(6 to 8 servings)

Meatballs:
½ lb ground beef
¼ c grated parmesan cheese
¼ c breadcrumbs (I used Progresso garlic & herb flavored)
1 egg
Salt and pepper (say 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper)

Directions:
Mix together gently with your hands and form into balls. Any size you like, but about a ½ Tbsp meat mixture is what we did Saturday. I used 1 Tbsp disher to measure and made 2 balls out of each. Bake in 350 oven for 20 minutes or until mostly done. Set aside until needed.

You can make as many meatballs as you wish. You can completely cheat and use frozen Italian style meatballs and I won’t tell anyone.


The Soup:

2 qts chicken broth or stock
1 medium onion – chopped
2 or 3 ribs of celery – chopped
1 c chopped carrot
3 c chopped kale or baby spinach (I used spinach on Saturday, but kale is more Italian)
1 c any really small pasta (I used D’Italini – which are little rings)
Cooked meatballs
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, minced
Salt and pepper to taste


Directions:
In a little olive oil, sauté onion, celery, and garlic until soft. Put in a little salt and pepper. Add the stock and carrots and bring to a boil. When at a boil, add the pasta and lower heat to medium. Cook until pasta is al dente. Drop in meatballs and stir in kale or spinach. Heat through. Taste and correct seasonings. Serve!!

On Saturday, we garnished with grated parmesan cheese.