Italian Wedding Soup

5 from 1 vote

This Italian Wedding Soup is a comforting and hearty dish, filled with juicy meatballs, tender vegetables, and small pasta pearls in a savory broth. It’s perfect for warming up on chilly days or whenever you need a delicious, easy-to-make meal that feels like a hug in a bowl.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Total Time50

Course: Lunch, Soup

Cuisine: Italian

Servings:

Calories: 449kcal

Author: Joanna Cismaru

Equipment

6 Quart Dutch Oven

Ingredients

For The Meatballs

½ pound ground beef
½ pound ground pork
1 large egg beaten
¼ cup Italian breadcrumbs
¼ cup Parmesan cheese grated
1 clove garlic minced
2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
salt and pepper to taste

For The Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion finely chopped
2 medium carrots diced
3 stalks celery diced
8 cups chicken broth low sodium
½ cup dry white wine
¾ cup acini di pepe pasta
1 cup fresh spinach roughly chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese grated, for serving

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a bowl, combine the ground beef, ground pork, egg, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper. Mix until well combined. Form the mixture into 1-inch meatballs and set aside.
In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook until they are browned on all sides and cooked through, about 7-10 minutes. Remove the meatballs from the pot and set aside.
In the same pot, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, chopped onions, carrots, and celery. Sauté the vegetables until they start to soften, about 5 minutes.
Pour in the chicken broth and white wine and bring to a boil. Add the acini di pepe pasta, and simmer until the pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes.
Return the meatballs to the pot and continue to simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
Stir in the fresh spinach and cook until the spinach is just wilted, about 1-2 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with extra grated Parmesan cheese.

Notes

If using leaner meats like turkey or chicken for the meatballs, consider adding a bit of olive oil to keep them moist.
For a gluten-free version, opt for gluten-free breadcrumbs in the meatballs and a suitable pasta alternative.
Feel free to adjust the amount of vegetables to your liking or based on what you have on hand.
To keep the pasta from absorbing too much broth if storing, cook it separately and add to individual servings.

Nutrition