Easy to make..I like the fact that I don't have to saute the veggies. Do however make better meatballs it makes all the difference. I make mine with: 8 oz pork 8 oz. beef 1 egg 1/3 cup parsley 1 t minced garlic 1 cup italian bread crumbs 1 t salt and 1/2 cup grated parmesan. I also use more broth. You can't really mess this recipe up.
I have made this recipe many times and it is one of my favorites! Over time I have made the following changes: I begin by sauteing my carrot, onion, and celery until veggies are tender and onion opaque, I add at least 64 oz broth swanson reduced sodium, no MSG), I get that up to a rolling boil then add my meatballs gently. Do not stir for several minutes and let them cook before turning down to a simmer. On the meatballs, I use only 1/2 lb ground meat, less breadcrumb, about 1/3 cup, and add parmesean cheese and finely chopped basil with the egg. I usually skip the chicken, and use the acini de pepe pasta. The spinich makes this thick and delicious. Add plenty of pepper. Wonderful! Thanks, Chuck.
This was a hit, what a great way to get a 5 year old to eat spinach, she loved it. And my husband said, "great way to get a 34 year old to eat his spinach too". Like some of the other folks, I adjusted a bit, used 1 large onion instead of 2, and that was PLENTY, used 1/2 sausage, and 1/2 ground beef for my meatballs, plus ITALIAN bread crumbs. I also baked my meatballs in the oven until browned before adding to soup. I did use the acini di pepe, which I boiled seperately, then added to stockpot. Also, I used 12 cups of chicken stock, you really need it once you add all of those lovely veggies and stuff. Once again, it was delicious, and thank the original maker for giving me a great base to play around with a bit, we will DEFINATELY be making this again. ALSO, this is a very FILLING soup, a small salad and some crusty bread, and you have a great meal.
Great recipe - very easy! Even easier was making it in the crockpot... I followed the recipe pretty much completely to the letter except: -Added more stock - probably about another can (14.5oz cans) and a half -Crockpot on High for 5 hours -Added pasta 30 minutes before the end (same as recipe) -Added cooked chicken (leftovers) 30 minutes before the end Came out great - HUGE batch of soup - definitely freezing the leftovers.
This was the first time I made Wedding Soup. I had tasted this soup only once in a coffee shop and had been dreaming of it since. I did make a few chages though. Like others I thought it needed more liquid so i added about 4 cups of water to the 48 ounces of broth. (Next time I'll just get an extra can) I only used one lg onion.
I used italian bread crumbs in the meatballs. I also cooked the orzo separately so it wouldn't cause the beautiful clear broth to become cloudy. All in all I was very proud of this soup and my 12 year old ate spinach and loved it. :) May substitute KALE next time.
T. LeBlanc
Excellent soup different from anything that I've ever prepared. It was actually fun to make. I used ground turkey in place of ground beef used Italian flavored breadcrumbs and added a little Italian seaoning. Also used an extra cn of chicken broth. Be careful with the acini de pepe pasta it swells quite a bit and mine was a little thick I think about 3/4 cup of dry pasta is about right. Served with hot homemeade rolls and a glass of cabernet. Perfect for a cold winters day. We loved it.
This recipe is exactly what I wanted for Italian Wedding Soup. I always bought it canned and it was just too salty. This took a little while, but was completely worth it. I made a few changes per some other reviewer suggestions: doubled chicken broth, used 50-50 sausage and ground beef, and skipped the chicken altogether. Also I sauteed the veggies in some olive oil and added a few finely chopped garlic cloves. I will be making this a lot from now on.
I changed some of the ingredients: I only used 1/2 of the bread crumbs called for and I used two eggs with the ground beef. I used chopped fresh kale instead of spinach due to the spinach shortage. I only used two carrots not two cups and 1 celery stalk. I doubled the amount of chicken stock as other suggested and just before serving I mixed in two beaten eggs and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese mixing the eggs in slowly until they were cooked through as all traditional Italian wedding soups should have.
This was tasty although you HAVE TO double the broth or you end up eating a stew instead of a soup. The whole kitchen smelled warm and inviting while it simmered and it was the perfect meal for the first cold night of autumn along with some Italian bread.
It's missing Parmigiano Reggiano. I would use fresh escarole not frozen spinach. The other vegetables don't belong neither does the chicken. And by all means don't use canned chicken broth.
