There is nothing better than cooking soup on a cold snowy Saturday that is warm and comforting to the soul. This is my Italian grandmother’s Italian Wedding Soup Recipe. There are a lot of steps to this delicious soup, but it is worth your time. You can freeze some for later.
Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
For the soup:
4-6 chicken thighs, skin removed
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
3 packages frozen chopped spinach (fresh spinach or escarole)
salt and pepper
For the meatballs:
1/2 pound ground chuck
2 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. parsley
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 slice stale bread, cubed
1 egg
salt and pepper
For the croutons:
4-5 slices stale bread, cubed
2-3 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp. olive oil
Directions
For the soup:
In a large soup pot combine chicken thighs, onion, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste. Add 10 cups of water. Bring to boil and simmer broth for about 50 minutes. After chicken is cooked, remove from bone, chop and return to stock.
Cook the spinach in a separate pot, strain and set aside.
For the meatballs:
In a large bowl combine ground chuck, Parmesan cheese, onion, parsley, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, bread, egg and salt and pepper to taste. Mix together with hands. Roll meatball mixture in hands to form tiny meatballs. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in fry pan. Brown meatballs on all sides. Remove from pan. Set aside.
For the croutons:
Beat 2-3 eggs in a large bowl. Add cubed bread to egg mixture and coat well. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in large pan. Saute croutons until golden brown. Set aside.
Soup:
Add the cooked spinach and meatballs to the stock, stir and simmer for about 15 minutes.
Ladle into soup bowls, add croutons and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.