my big fat italian wedding soup

the healthiest marriage to come out of southern italy

Things to Know

Serves: 4 hungry people and 4 more tomorrow

Takes: 45 minutes

---

My dad used to call my daughter a little meatball back when she was a toddler. I quickly let him know that’s not a nickname I want for her. He said he was just trying it out. Glad it didn’t stick.

Let me clear this up. Contrary to popular belief, they’re not actually serving this soup at weddings. It just translates roughly to “married” soup. We’re talking about the union of flavors between greens and meat, not between people with names like Giuseppe and Francesca. Italians can find a way to put meatballs and carbs into anything and I find that to be quite endearing.

I made some fresh bread with this as well. If you want that recipe, let me know.

---

Ingredients

Meatballs

• ½ lb ground pork

• ½ lb ground beef (or just do 1 lb of one and don’t tell anyone)

• ½ cup panko breadcrumbs

• 1 egg

• 1 tsp dried oregano or Italian seasoning

• 3 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, minced

• 3 garlic cloves, grated

• ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper

Aromatics

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 white onion, diced

• 4 stalks celery, diced

• 3 carrots, diced 

• 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper

Soup

• 6 cups chicken broth (best if homemade, fine if boxed or bouillon powder)

• 1 bay leaf

• ¾ cups orzo, or another tiny pasta, cooked separately

• 4 cups chopped leafy greens (spinach, kale, whatever hasn’t yet wilted in the fridge)

• Optional: Grated parm, lemon wedge

Instructions

In a bowl, mix pork, beef, breadcrumbs, egg, garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, and parsley. Use your hands. Roll into baby meatballs — like, tablespoon-sized. Yes, it’s tedious. Yes, it’s worth it. I ended up with about 30 of them.

Heat enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a big soup pot. Sear the meatballs in batches till they get a little crusty, but don’t cook through. We want a nice, deep browning on them. Pull them out and set aside. (They’ll finish in the broth.)

In the same pot (don’t clean it), saute onion, garlic, and celery and cook until it softens, about 7 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and bring it to a simmer. Scrape up all the good meatball bits at the bottom. Toss in a bay leaf; I’m not sure it does anything but it’s worth a shot. Add meatballs and simmer for 10-ish minutes.

Reduce heat and add your cooked pasta. Stir in chopped spinach or whatever you’re using. Let it wilt for 2–3 minutes.

Taste and adjust with salt. Serve hot with a shower of grated parm, and a squeeze of lemon if you really want to get wild.