To Make The Meatballs:
What Can I Prepare Ahead Of Time
This Italian Wedding Soup recipe is verysimple but it does require chopping some veggies and assembling the meatballswhich can take some time. Fortunately, you can do both in advance!
- Vegetables: The onions, celery, carrots and garlic can all be chopped ahead of time. Store the onions , carrots and celery in airtight container together and the garlic in a separate container/bag in the refrigerator.
- Assemble meatballs: You can completely assemble the meatballs according to directions. To store, line uncooked meatballs on parchment paper and tightly wrap with foil or plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours until ready to use then simply drop uncooked meatballs directly into the soup.
- Freeze meatballs. You can also flash freeze the raw meatballs on the parchment lined baking sheet for 1-2 hours, then transfer to a freezer safe container and freeze for 3-4 months. More detailed instructions to follow.
Do I Have To Brown The Meatballs First
No! Authentic Italian Wedding Soup calls fordropping the meatballs directly into the simmering soup to cook just like I do inmy Albondigas Soup this not only saves you time by eliminating the browningstep but also infuses the broth with TONSof flavor that cannot be achieved any other way. Simply skim the fat from the broth prior toserving.
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How To Make Creamy Italian Wedding Soup
Italian Wedding Soup can also be made tantalizingly creamy by adding flour and half and half with cornstarch in place of all chicken broth.
- Cook vegetables with 4 tablespoons butter.
- Sprinkle & frac13 cup flour over the onions and carrots/celery the last minute of cooking and cook for one minute.
- Instead of using all chicken broth, use 6 cups chicken broth and 4 cups half and half mixed with 2 tablespoons cornstarch OR 4 cups heavy cream without the cornstarch.
Substitutions For Healthy Italian Wedding Soup
There are lots of substitutions for this Italian wedding soup recipe.
Meat You can use any meat for the meatballs. Chicken or beef will work fine, but we prefer turkey.
Pasta Pasta can be subbed in for zoodles if youd like
Other vegetables You can add in cauliflower rice to this soup if youd like. Feel free to add more carrots, celery or onion.
What can be served with Italian Wedding Soup? This soup is hearty and filling on its own but it also goes great with a loaf of bread, or alongside a sandwich!
Can this Italian wedding soup be frozen? Yes it can! Store your soup in an airtight containers. I love Souper Cubes for freezing soup. Code CLEANEATING10 works to save $$!
When youre ready to eat, defrost the night before by leaving this in the fridge, or take out of the refrigerator and heat over the stove/in the microwave. Separation is normal and ok! Just stir it up.
I would not recommend storing this soup with the zucchini noodles in it. It will also not freeze well with the zucchini noodle added to it. The zucchini noodles absorb water, so its to store them separately if you dont want a mushy mess!
Ive included some important tips below, make sure to read them before making this soup!
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Tips For Making Healthy Italian Wedding Soup
- Be sure to add the zucchini noodles to your bowl ONLY when youre ready to serve. They will not hold well in the soup! Then if you have extra soup, you can store the soup + noodles separately + the noodles wont get soggy.
- When spiralizing your zucchini noodles, squeeze them with a paper towel to absorb the moisture
- If you are saving your zucchini noodles, I like to put them in a container or a stasher bag with a folded paper towel, it will help absorb any extra moisture so they stay fresh and dont get soggy!
- Using a food processor for chopping herbs + veggies is the best! For the meatballs, I put the herbs, spinach, onions + garlic in the food processor and pulsed until they were fine pieces. I did the same thing for the soup!
If you love ground turkey, check out these Healthy Ground Turkey Recipes!
How To Make Sausage Italian Wedding Soup
Make it sausage wedding soup by using ½ pound bulk sweet Italian sausage in place of ½ pound ground beef in this recipe or 1 pound sweet or spicy Italian sausage links.
Just add the sausage to the soup in place of the meatballs
Then at the end of the cook time, remove, slice, and add back to the soup.
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The Ingredients For Italian Wedding Soup
- Ground pork & ground beef. The meatballs are made with a blend of pork and beef for an extra hearty flavor.
- Almond flour & egg yolk. This is used as a binder in the meatballs. If you dont do eggs or almonds, you can actually skip these, but it does change the texture just a bit.
- Chicken broth.
- Carrots, onions, garlic & herbs.
- Cassava orzo. You can also use any other orzo of your choice, but the cassava orzo keeps this recipe grain and gluten-free.
- Spinach. The hallmark of an Italian wedding soup!
Everyone In The Hot Tub
While the meatballs are baking, start on the soup. Heat your oil and onions. Add garlic and season with salt and pepper. The stock is added and heated to a boil, then the pasta and meatballs go in. A few minutes later, soup is on the table! Given the meat, greens and pasta in the soup, you might consider it a light meal. I keep it gluten free by using Barilla gluten free shaped pastas. They hold up very well in this soup. Some other dishes that would go well with it if you are looking for something more would be Italian Quinoa Casserole, Veggie Lasagna, Kicked up Kale Salad with Fig Balsamic Dressing, Truffle Spinach Quiche or Spicy Broccoli Quiche.
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Why Add Collagen To Your Italian Wedding Soup
The reality is that if you dont have a pre-made broth or bone stock on hand, you may be working with a boxed product or some sort of gluten free bouillon.
The latter option isnt going to give you that added collagen boost that you can get from bone broth.
Even if you make your own bone broth, you still have no idea how much collagen is in each serving. Depending on how long the bones are cooked and a variety of other factors you may not get as much as you think.
Collagen is an integral part of bones, skin, cartilage, and tendons from fowl, mammals, and even fish.
Just in case youre wondering, there are no vegetarian or vegan collagen sources. Any formulas claiming to be vegan arent true collagen, but rather a mixture of micronutrients that are found in or help build collagen in your body. But it is not true collagen.
Hydrolyzed collagen dissolves in liquid without making it thicker . Thats why adding collagen to soup is an incredibly easy way to increase protein of your meal while reaping the benefits simultaneously.
Just a word of caution collagen is not a complete protein. So it shouldnt be used as an alternative to a complete protein powder in protein shakes, for example. You can use it in addition to other protein so that you get a complete amino acid spectrum for your bodys needs.
Fortunately hydrolyzed collagen powder is tasteless so you can add it to nearly anything! Though totally not soup related, I love adding to protein shakes .
How To Make Paleo And Whole30 Italian Wedding Soup
Peel and dice the onion. Peel, trim and dice the carrots. Trim and dice the celery.
Heat one tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium heat.
Add the onion, carrots and celery, plus 1 teaspoon dried thyme and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir occasionally until softened, about 5-6 minutes.
Add the chicken broth and water to the pot. Turn the heat to high and bring the broth to a boil.
While you wait for the broth to boil, make the meatballs.
In a large mixing bowl, add the beef, pork, egg, nutritional yeast, parsley, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper.
Use your hands to blend everything together. Or add everything to the bowl of a stand mixer and blend using the paddle attachment on low speed.
Using a small cookie scoop or spoons, scoop out a scant tablespoon of the mixture onto a baking sheet. Set a glass of warm water next to the baking sheet and use it to get your palms damp. Then roll each meatball between your palms until its shaped like a ball. Youll have to re-wet your hands every 5-6 balls or otherwise the mixture gets sticky.
Trim off and discard the root end of the escarole and chop into roughly 1 pieces.
Once the broth has reached a boil, carefully drop in the meatballs and then the greens.
Reduce the heat to medium so the broth is at a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes .
Ladle into bowls and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, if desired.
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What To Pair With Meatball Soup
Most of the time we eat soup alone and don’t pair it with other sides. But if you are on the hunt for some tasty sides to match with this soup, let me share a few ideas below.
- Green Salad
If you are a fan of soup give my meatball soup recipe a try. It is simple to make, minimal ingredients required and can serve a crowd. Best of all it reheats beautifully for meals down the line.
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Double Or Triple The Meatballs
I have tripled the ingredients so that you have extra meatball mixture on hand in the freezer to pull out for a quick and warm weeknight meal.
Prep once and have at the ready numerous meals within minutes! Its simple and nutritious, light and yet fulfilling. The reality is that it truly makes more meatballs than I usually put in, thereby I am able to get 6 soups out of tripling the recipe. I dont think anyone feels cheated either.
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Gluten Free Dairy Free
I am so excited about this recipe! It is the first time I have had wedding soup in 9 years. This recipe is simple and easy to make!
Ingredients:
1 package gluten free orzo.
20 gluten free dairy free meatballs, I use the premade meatballs by Cooked Perfect Brand.
Chopped spinach, I use fresh but frozen would work just as well.
1 1/2 cup carrots, diced.
1/2 yellow onion, diced.
1 cup celery, diced.
2 tbsp minced garlic.
6 cups gluten free chicken broth – gluten free orzo tends to soak up some of the broth.
Dairy free parmesan.
In large pot, add carrots, onions, and celery cook until softened.
Add the garlic and sauté until slightly brown.
Add chicken broth.
Warm the meatballs in the microwave.
Add the meatballs and uncooked gluten free orzo. Let simmer until the orzo is tender which is about 10-11 minutes. Check the package to make sure not to overcook.
For the last step, add the spinach and cook until softened.
Serve warm and sprinkle some dairy free parmesan on top.
Enjoy!!
Can I Substitute Other Greens
Absolutely! When it comesto what leafy greens to add to Italian Wedding Soup, it comes down to personalpreference. Our household prefers babyspinach but you may also substitute with escarole, kale or endive.
If you choose to use escarole, kale or endive, you will want toadd them to the soup when you add the pasta because they take longer to cookthan spinach, which wilts almost instantly.
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How Do I Reheat Italian Wedding Soup
- Stove: You can reheat large batches of Italian Wedding Soup on the stove over medium low heat, stirring gently until warmed through. Add additional water or broth as needed to reach desired consistency.
- Microwave: For smaller batches or individual servings, you can reheat the soup in the microwave. Transfer soup to a microwave-safe dish, cover with a microwave-safe lid or paper towel. Microwave for 2 minutes, stir, then continue to microwave for 30-second intervals, if needed. Stir in additional broth or water to reach desired consistency.
Gluten Free Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
A new year has arrived and wouldnt you know it, were back to a busy school year!
After such a nice and relaxing break, it was honestly tough to plunge into our hectic family schedule again. And what suffers the most? Our meals. Wanting to keep things simple, delicious and a bit healthier for 2016, Ive been cooking up a delicious twist on a classic family soup.
This Gluten Free Crockpot Italian Wedding Soup is perfect for busy family weeknights, with less work, lots of flavor and warm goodness for the winter months ahead. And you wont want to miss my secret to soup perfection every single time!
Italian Wedding Soup has always been one of my personal favorite soups. A hearty meal within itself, it has the deliciousness of meatballs, veggies and pastaand no one in the family complaining. But you know why I hate making this soup at home?
GROAN
Homemade meatballs. Almost every recipe Ive found calls for homemade meatballs. The mixing, the rolling, the baking and then the soup cooking? Im sorry. This mom doesnt have the time for all of that nonsense when we have baseball season, boy scouts and homework to contend with. So whats my secret to perfect meatballs for Italian Wedding Soup? Farm Rich.
Farm Rich helps me to simplify family meals with wholesome meatballs that I can depend on for a delicious meal every single time. Made with only quality ingredients, I can whip up a quick and tasty soup thats not only good, but Real-Life Good.
Heres the recipe:
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Do You Have To Use Pasta
You do not have to use pasta when cooking keto meatball soup. In my recipe, I skip the pasta and use veggies like spinach and zucchini to replace the pasta with wholesome vegetables. It is a lighter version but still packs some incredible taste.
You don’t need pasta as a filler when your soup has delicious broth, fresh veggies, and a protein!
More Lick Your Bowl Worthy Soup Recipes
- 1lb ground pork
Directions
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Making The Broth For Italian Wedding Soup
For the broth, now were back to the basic recipe, so get the triple or double idea out of your head, unless you want a HUMONGOUS pot of soup, then by all means, go right ahead! Add your chicken stock or broth, broths are more seasoned, so reduce your overall seasonings to taste. Whats the difference? Basically, a stock is made from bones and a broth is a liquid in which meat has been cooked. Read more in Alton Browns post.
Add garlic powder, celery salt, onion powder, salt and pepper to taste. If using a broth, taste first to see how much seasoning you need to add.
While you are waiting for your stock to come to a rolling, soft boil, make your mini meatballs.
Form your teensy, tiny, bite-size meatballs by pinching off small amounts of the meat, a little smaller than a teaspoon. You can make them larger, but the mouth appeal is so much better when they are tiny.
Once your soup is gently boiling, add in your meatballs. Those teensy ones, you just lovingly formed. Return to a simmer, they will float to the top when they are finished cooking, about 2-4 minutes.
Once they float to the top, increase your heat so that your broth is at a nice rolling boil, then add pasta.
Add your Acini de Pepe or Orzo or Riso, any tiny shaped pasta works best. Cook according to package directions, making sure the pasta is cooked.
Adjust seasonings as needed. Sprinkle a little Parmesan or Romano cheese on the top, serve with a crusty loaf of bread and enjoy!
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