This is a great recipe! I vary a bit from the directions as written, though, and have found it results in a more flavorful soup. I begin the whole process by cooking onion and garlic in olive oil until soft. I add half of this to my ground chicken for my meatballs. For the meatballs, I omit the egg but add salt, pepper, herbs (i usually use thyme and rosemary) and NUTMEG (!!!). I form the meatballs and cover them with a wet paper towel and put them in the fridge for later. Meanwhile back in the pot, I add the chopped carrots and celery (I also omit the parsnip) to the onion and garlic and season with a pinch (just a pinch!) of turmeric. I let the veggies cook for a few minutes before adding the broth and bay leaves. Once this mixture comes to a boil, I add the 4 c water and allow it to boil again. (*** You can let it cook like this, covered, pretty much as long as you want! Longer = more flavor! It will reduce some, though, so be prepared for that or add more water, 1c at a time! ***) When its getting close to eatin' time, I carefully drop the meatballs into the soup mixture 1 at a time and let them cook in the broth rather than baking them. I also boil some egg noodles separately for adding to the soup (I do this so everyone can add as many or as few noodles as they want, also so they don't turn to mush sitting in the hot soup!). The result is OUTSTANDING! A cold winter night go-to in our house! It also freezes beautifully, sometimes we make a double batch for later!