This might sound like I’m joking but my first introduction to Italian wedding soup actually happened at a wedding. Honestly, what a coincidence! And while I can’t exactly remember whose wedding it was, sorry I was just a kid. What I do remember is instantly falling in love with this soup.
And it’s not like the dish is anything crazy, in fact, it’s pretty basic comfort food. Consisting of small meatballs, tiny pasta, some sort of greens, and a few diced vegetables all cooked in chicken broth. But this simplicity is exactly why this soup is so great. Because it can easily be made at home and is something that just about everyone will enjoy.
Why is it Called Italian Wedding Soup?
Like many people, I always assumed that it was called wedding soup because you had it at weddings. And seeing as how I was introduced to it, can you really blame me?
But the truth is that the Italian wedding soup has nothing to do with weddings at all. You see the actual Italian name for the dish is minestra maritata which translates as married soup. And is really in reference to the combination, or “marriage” of leafy greens and meatballs that are featured in the soup.
So add that to the list of useless factoids that you can bring up to friends and family to feel smart and cultured.
Tips, Tricks & Suggestions
- When it comes to the meatballs I prefer to use a 50/50 mixture of beef and pork. However, you can just as easily use all beef, all pork, veal, or even chicken or turkey for a healthier option. So go ahead and use whatever type of ground meat that you want.
- Similarly, you have a number of options as to what type of greens you can add to this soup. Today I will be using spinach because I like its flavor and that’s how I’ve always made it. But you can easily sub that out with either escarole, kale, chard, or even endive. Just be mindful that those greens will need additional cooking time compared to the quick cooking spinach. So add them at the same time you add the pasta to ensure that they are fully cooked.
- One of the biggest debates concerning this soup is whether or not you should cook the pasta in the soup, or separately. I am firmly on team cook it in the soup but there are merits to both methods. Cooking them in the soup will allow the pasta to take on more flavor, while the starches it releases will slightly thicken the broth. That being said the pasta can get overcooked, and thicken the soup too much if left in the soup for too long. So if you don’t want that, or are planning on making leftovers of this soup then simply cook the pasta in a separate pot. Then all you have to do is add a bit of the cooked pasta to each bowl before you ladle the rest of the soup in them.
- This soup goes great with some of our focaccia, rosemary no-knead bread, or cheddar chive drop biscuits.
Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour
Servings: 8
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
½ Lb of ground beef
½ Lb of ground pork
3 Cloves of garlic, minced
1 Large egg
½ Cup of plain bread crumbs
¼ Cup of parmesan cheese, grated
¼ Cup of fresh parsley leaves, finely minced
½ Teaspoon of Italian seasoning
1 Teaspoon of salt
½ Teaspoon of black pepper
For the soup:
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
1 Large onion, diced
2 Large carrots, diced
2 Stalks of celery, diced
2 Cloves of garlic, minced
½ Teaspoon of dried parsley
½ Teaspoon of dried basil
½ Teaspoon of dried oregano
3 Quarts of chicken stock
½ Cup of dry white wine (optional)
⅔ Cup of small pasta (like acini de pepe, pastina, or orzo)
4 Cups of baby spinach
Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make and form the meatballs: Get out a large mixing bowl and add all of the ingredients for the meatballs into it. Use your hands to mix all of these ingredients until they are thoroughly incorporated.
Then let this mixture rest for 10 minutes so the flavors meld together. Finally, Use your hands to roll and form the meat into small balls (about a ping pong size or smaller) and place them on a plate.
- Brown the meatballs: Add the 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a large pot and place it over medium heat. Once the pot is hot add the meatballs (make sure this is done in batches as you don’t want to overcrowd the pot) and brown them for roughly 3 to 4 minutes. Then use tongs to flip them over and let them brown on the other side for roughly another 3 minutes.
Remove the browned meatballs from the pot and place them on a plate. Repeat this process until all the meatballs are browned. Don’t worry if the meatballs aren’t fully cooked, they will finish cooking in the soup.
- Make the base for the soup: Add the diced onion, carrot, and celery to the pot and sautee these ingredients for 5 minutes or until the onion has become translucent. Next toss in the minced garlic along with the dried parsley, basil, and oregano.
Stir the ingredients and continue to saute for another minute. Finally pour in the chicken stock and white wine. Stir everything together and let the soup come to a simmer.
- Finish cooking the meatballs: Make sure that the soup is at a simmer and add the meatballs back to the pot. Let this cook on a simmer (don’t let it come to a boil or else the meatballs might fall apart) for 15 to 20 minutes or until the meatballs are fully cooked. You will know this has happened when most of the meatballs float to the top.
- Cook the pasta: Now that the meatballs are fully cooked you can turn the heat up and let the soup come to a light boil. Then add in the pasta and let it cook in the soup for 7 to 9 minutes.
- Finish the dish: Now you can finally add the spinach to the soup. I know it will look like a lot at first but as the spinach cooks it will wilt and shrink in size. This should only take about 4 to 6 minutes. And once the spinach is fully cooked taste the soup and add additional salt and pepper to your liking.
- Ladle the Italian wedding soup into bowls, and garnish with some additional parmesan. Enjoy!
Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
- ½ Lb of ground beef
- ½ Lb of ground pork
- 3 Cloves of garlic minced
- 1 Large egg
- ½ Cup of plain bread crumbs
- ¼ Cup of parmesan cheese grated
- ¼ Cup of fresh parsley leaves finely minced
- ½ Teaspoon of Italian seasoning
- 1 Teaspoon of salt
- ½ Teaspoon of black pepper
For the soup:
- 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 Large onion diced
- 2 Large carrots diced
- 2 Stalks of celery diced
- 2 Cloves of garlic minced
- ½ Teaspoon of dried parsley
- ½ Teaspoon of dried basil
- ½ Teaspoon of dried oregano
- 3 Quarts of chicken stock
- ½ Cup of dry white wine optional
- ⅔ Cup of small pasta like acini de pepe, pastina, or orzo
- 4 Cups of baby spinach
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make and form the meatballs: Get out a large mixing bowl and add all of the ingredients for the meatballs into it. Use your hands to mix all of these ingredients until they are thoroughly incorporated. Then let this mixture rest for 10 minutes so the flavors meld together. Finally, Use your hands to roll and form the meat into small balls (about a ping pong size or smaller) and place them on a plate.
- Brown the meatballs: Add the 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a large pot and place it over medium heat. Once the pot is hot add the meatballs (make sure this is done in batches as you don’t want to overcrowd the pot) and brown them for roughly 3 to 4 minutes. Then use tongs to flip them over and let them brown on the other side for roughly another 3 minutes. Remove the browned meatballs from the pot and place them on a plate. Repeat this process until all the meatballs are browned. Don’t worry if the meatballs aren’t fully cooked, they will finish cooking in the soup.
- Make the base for the soup: Add the diced onion, carrot, and celery to the pot and sautee these ingredients for 5 minutes or until the onion has become translucent. Next toss in the minced garlic along with the dried parsley, basil, and oregano. Stir the ingredients and continue to saute for another minute. Finally pour in the chicken stock and white wine. Stir everything together and let the soup come to a simmer.
- Finish cooking the meatballs: Make sure that the soup is at a simmer and add the meatballs back to the pot. Let this cook on a simmer (don’t let it come to a boil or else the meatballs might fall apart) for 15 to 20 minutes or until the meatballs are fully cooked. You will know this has happened when most of the meatballs float to the top.
- Cook the pasta: Now that the meatballs are fully cooked you can turn the heat up and let the soup come to a light boil. Then add in the pasta and let it cook in the soup for 7 to 9 minutes.
- Finish the dish: Now you can finally add the spinach to the soup. I know it will look like a lot at first but as the spinach cooks it will wilt and shrink in size. This should only take about 4 to 6 minutes. And once the spinach is fully cooked taste the soup and add additional salt and pepper to your liking.
- Ladle the Italian wedding soup into bowls, and garnish with some additional parmesan. Enjoy!
