Food Challenge #4: Italian Wedding Soup

One of our recipes at the Arts & Imagination class today was Italian Wedding Soup. It was a big hit with the kids so I’d thought I’d share the recipe with you so you can try it at home with your kids. For all of you that are vegetarians, you can skip on the turkey meatballs or substitute with vegetarian meatballs. So, give it a try and let me know what you think! It is a perfect, hearty and nutritious meal for any cold day!

Also, don’t forget you can add the remainder of a block of parmesan cheese for extra flavor! I freshly grate the parmesan cheese for our meals and save the end of the block in the freezer to throw into all of my soups. Just my own little trick to kick it up a notch.

Italian Wedding Soup

Ingredients:

Meatballs:

• 1 lb. all-natural ground turkey
• 1 small onion, grated
• 1 carrot, peeled and grated
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup Italian style bread crumbs
• ½ cup parmesan cheese, grated
• ½ cup fresh parsley, minced
• ½ cup fresh basil, minced
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 egg, beaten

Soup:

• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 organic carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 organic celery stalks, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cans cannellini beans, rinsed
• 2 (32oz) containers organic chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 1/2 cups organic crushed tomatoes
• 10 oz. frozen organic spinach, thawed
• ½ lb. small pasta such as ditalini
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp dried oregano

Instructions:

1. To make meatballs, combine all ingredients in large bowl and mix with your hands until combined well.
2. Scoop one tablespoon of turkey mixture into the palm of your hand and roll into mini-size meatballs.
3. In sauté pan, cook meatballs in olive oil until slightly browned on all sides. Set aside.
4. To make soup, cover bottom of large pot with olive oil and sauté onion, carrots, celery and garlic for 5-10 minutes or until softened.
5. Add cannellini beans, chicken broth, crushed tomatoes and block of parmesan cheese, if using. Bring to a boil.
6. Reduce heat to medium and add spinach, pasta and reserved turkey meatballs to soup. Season with salt, pepper and oregano and simmer for 20 minutes or until fully cooked. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Grade: A

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