An abundance of fresh vegetables, including kale, make this comforting Italian Wedding soup doubly delicious, nutrient-rich and satisfying.
Servings: 6-8 servings
Ingredients
Meatballs:
1poundground pork
1poundlean ground beef
3tablespoonschopped fresh parsley
2garlic clovescrushed
3/4cupPanko crumbs
1/2cupfreshly grated Comte cheese *
1egglightly beaten
1/2teaspoonfreshly ground pepper
1/2teaspoonsalt
1teaspoonsmoked sweet paprika
Soup ingredients:
8cupshomemade turkey stock *
3/4cupsmall pasta such as tubetini or stars
2cupschopped kale
2tablespoonsextra vigil olive oil
1 1/2cupchopped carrots
1leeksliced or 1 cup chopped onion
1cupdiced celery
1/2teaspoonred chile flakes
2tablespoonsfresh thyme leaves
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine the ground pork, ground beef, parsley, garlic, Panko, egg and spices. Use your hands or a wooden spoon to mix all the ingredients together. Use to scoop up small amounts of the meat mixture and form 1 inch meatballs. Arrange meatballs on parchment paper placed on a rimmed baking sheet. I made about 40 small meatballs for the soup and a few larger ones for meatball sandwiches. Bake for about 30 minutes until browned.
Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables for the soup If you're using a leek, wash thoroughly, cut off the upper dark green part and discard. Then cut the white and light green part of the leek in half lengthwise and slice crosswise. For the kale, remove the center rib using a knife or your hand and chop or tear the leaves into pieces. In a heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium high heat and cook the carrots for 5 minutes. Add the celery and leeks and cook for 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the chile flakes and garlic and cook for another minutes.
While you're cooking the vegetables, heat the turkey stock in a large soup pot over high heat until boiling. Add the pasta and kale, lower the heat to medium high and cover. Cook for about 8 minutes until the pasta is al dente and kale is softened. Add the carrot mixture, meatballs, and thyme. Cook for about 5 minutes more to heat all the ingredients and meld the flavors. Ladle into bowls and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
*Comte is a French aged cheese, Parmesan and Fontina are equally delicious.
*Low Sodium Chicken Broth may be substituted.