Italian Wedding Soup
A delicious and classic recipe, this Italian Wedding Soup is hearty and comforting. It is made with a flavorful broth filled with vegetables, meatballs and pasta!
A TASTY CLASSIC SOUP RECIPE
One thing I love about Fall is that it means I can make all the soups! One of my favorites has always been this Italian Wedding Soup. It manages to be a super filling soup without leaving you feeling heavy afterwards. All the flavors, from the spices, to the pasta, vegetables and meatballs work so well together. Don’t let the all ingredients fool you, it is actually much simpler to make than you would think at first glance. This Italian Wedding Soup can easily be made in under an hour and it will taste like it’s been simmering away all day!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
No, you can certainly use dried. I like the fresh because it really adds a depth of flavor. To use dried herbs for this recipe, substitute 1 teaspoon dried for every 1 tablespoon fresh.
You can use ground turkey or a mixture of ground beef and pork.
Partially. You can make the meatballs ahead of time; bake them, and then store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you are ready to make the soup, just add the meatballs when the directions say so.
Sometimes Acini de Pepe can be hard to find so you can substitute it with orzo or any other small pasta.
Traditionally this recipe uses spinach but kale would be a good substitute as well or you can leave it out altogether.
This can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator where it will keep for up to 3 days. I don’t suggest freezing. If you do, I would freeze before adding the pasta and the spinach and add them to the soup once you are reheating. You can reheat this in the microwave or on the stovetop.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)
- ground chicken
- egg
- fresh parsley
- fresh oregano
- kosher salt and pepper
- garlic
- Italian breadcrumbs
- chicken broth
- celery stalks
- carrots
- sweet onion
- red pepper flakes
- acini de pepe pasta
- spinach
HOW TO MAKE ITALIAN WEDDING SOUP:
Preheat the oven to 400F degrees. Place aluminum foil on a baking sheet and spray it with nonstick cooking spray (or use nonstick foil.) To make meatballs, place ground chicken, fresh parsley, fresh oregano, one egg, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and 3 garlic cloves in a bowl and mix to combine.
Form into ½ inch balls and place on a baking sheet. I think this is easiest by using a cookie scoop.
Bake for 14-15 minutes until they are golden brown. Don’t worry if they aren’t fully cooked, they will finish cooking in the soup.
While the meatballs are baking, place a large pot over medium heat. Add in olive oil, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, salt and pepper.
Stir and cook for 7-8 minutes until softened. Then add in oregano and red pepper flakes, cook for another minute.
Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling add in pasta and cook for 5 minutes. Then add in the meatballs and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Place the heat on low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Once done add in spinach and let it slightly wilt then serve!
Enjoy!
WANT MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES? YOU MUST TRY THESE!
Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves, finely minced or grated
- ½ cup Italian breadcrumbs
Soup:
- 9-10 cups chicken broth
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 3 carrots, diced
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh oregano
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ cups Acini de Pepe pasta
- 3-4 ounces fresh spinach
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F degrees. Place aluminum foil on a baking sheet and spray it with nonstick cooking spray (or use nonstick foil.)
- To make meatballs, place ground chicken, fresh parsley, fresh oregano, one egg, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and 3 garlic cloves in a bowl and mix to combine.
- Form into ½ inch balls and place on a baking sheet. I think this is easiest by using a cookie scoop.
- Bake for 14-15 minutes until they are golden brown. Don't worry if they aren't fully cooked, they will finish cooking in the soup.
- While the meatballs are baking, place a large pot over medium heat. Add in olive oil, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, salt and pepper.
- Stir and cook for 7-8 minutes until softened. Then add in oregano and red pepper flakes, cook for another minute.
- Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling add in pasta and cook for 5 minutes. Then add in the meatballs and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Place the heat on low and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Once done, add in spinach, allow it to wilt slightly then serve!
Notes
- You can use other meats for the meatballs, see above for some suggestions.
- Other pasta can be used like orzo or a smaller pasta of your choice.
- Kale can be swapped out for the spinach.
- This can be frozen, but freeze before adding the pasta or spinach.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Italian Wedding Soup is one of my top 3 favorite soups of all time and Brandie, you nailed it with this one! This recipe is absolute perfection! I followed everything exactly as listed and used Better than Bouillon as my chicken broth. I also doubled this recipe because I wanted to be able to freeze it to eat on those nights when you want something good but don’t feel like cooking. I know that you recommended not freezing this soup, but it actually froze very well for me. The acini de pepe pasta soaks up alot of the broth as the soup sits. However, because the soup is so well seasoned, I just add water to the refrigerated or frozen soup and the flavors are just as rich, if not more so, as if I had made it fresh. Adding the water did not dilute the flavors at all. The pasta, meatballs, and veggies all maintained their shape and texture very nicely after freezing. Thanks for this amazing recipe!
Excellent, as usual! I ended up using orzo because I had it on hand, and it worked out perfectly. I also browned my meatballs a bit longer and ended up just doing a 10 minute simmer at the end to warm them up rather than risk overcooking them. The only other tweak I added was a teaspoon of Better than Bouillon (I was a little short on broth and had to add a cup of water to compensate) and I tossed in the leftover tablespoon or so of fresh parsley I had from the meatballs. I topped it with a little more fresh parsley and a pinch of shredded parm. Served with warm Italian bread, and my husband almost licked the bowl.
As always, you served up a hit! Thanks so much!
Thank you so much for mentioning that you used orzo. I’m sure a lot of people will be wondering what other pasta worked for them. So happy this was a hit for you Elizabeth!