Italian Wedding Soup Recipe (2024)

I bake the meatballs at 350 for 15 minutes. I use escarole instead of spinach. And I cook the pasta separately and add to each bowl while serving; this way the pasta doesn’t get mushy in the leftovers.

There's hardly any way this soup can be prepared in the 15 minutes the recipe indicates. It includes forming 80 small meatballs! And there's onion, celery, carrots, and garlic to peel/chop too. It is a great soup though.

To streamline the meatball making, I make a square or rectangle out of the entire meatball mixture about 1" thick. Then cut into 1" squares. To brown I broil watching carefully. My family isn't fussed if the meatball shape isn't round :)

To make it Diabetic friendly I substitute rinsed canned white Cannelloni beans instead of pasta. Yes, carbs present but much less and a good amount of fiber.

So I don't do 80 meatballs.. I do 30. But I have a round scoop with handle releaser (like ice cream) and I scoop them and lightly press. Then I roast them 15m in 375 oven. Then put in soup.Also before that, to make this much faster, I put all the meatball ingredients into bowl, and use a potato masher. Makes very fast work of mixing and is very even. Then scoop and shape. Roast on parchment for quick cleanup.

My Italian grandmother always made her version of this soup for the winter holidays. She used her tried and true meatball receipe and our job as children was to roll tiny tiny meatballs, which were much smaller than this. She used escarole instead of spinach and did not serve the aromatics used to flavor her homade chicken broth. Finally she beast an appropriate amount of eggs and stirred them into the simmering soup right before serving. It was delicious and I remember her each time I make

Been making this for yrs each winter - few suggestions:1 lb ground lamb insteadMix Breadcrumbs w/ 2-3 T of milkFinely chop ½c mixed herbs: italian flat parsley & 2T chopped rosemary, OR ½ & ½ mint & parsley OR marjoram, parsley & savory OR tarragon Sea Salt⅓ L sweet onion fine chop5-10 garlic confit cloves & T garlic olive oilSoup: 2/3 L sweet onion fine chopScuccuzzu pasta (italianharvest.com)Swiss chardShape meatballs w/ sm round scoop & lightly press. Roast 15min first.

This soup is Wonderful!! I added a Parmesan rind to broth

We’ve made this soup for generations for the holidays. Meatballs can be boiled in a separate pot and then added to the soup (so there’s less grease). Use escarole instead of spinach. Note - sometimes escarole is hard to find. When I find it, I wash it (very well) and freeze it in plastic bags until I’m making soup. I’ll even boil the pasta separately and then add to the soup later so it’s less starchy depending on the pasta.

We use escarole instead of spinach .

Delicious! My family and I simply adored the tiny meatballs. To respond to other commenters, you may bake the meatballs to brown them prior to simmering them in the broth. However, you are missing out on the delicious fond (i.e., tasty browned bits) that will form at the bottom of the pot upon frying and give your sauteed veggies that extra savory oomph. I also highly recommend making your own chicken broth (I follow instructions by NYT's very own Melissa Clark). Wonderful cozy soup for Autumn!

Has anyone tried baking the meatballs instead of frying them?

I buy pre-made meatballs at my local Italian store. That is the biggest part of the prep. I boil chicken thighs to form the base and put chicken in. To me it needs both meatballs and chicken. I add escarole not spinach. I use pastina (not always easy to find) but acini di pepe is the second choice. Ditalini or orzo would be too thick. I like to put some beat up egg in at the end and pecorino romano cheese, not parmesean.

Escarole. Has to be escarole.

Yes.. works really well. See my complete notes.

I grew up on wedding soup brought from Italy in my nana's head. We make homemade chicken broth. For a large pot of soup, use a whole chicken. For a smaller pot, use 2 breasts, or a combo of abreast & a thigh, must be BONE-IN for fuller flavor. We shred the chicken into the soup. Store-bought broth works, but chicken pieces must be simmered. We use escarole; spinach works in a pinch. Stir in 2-3 eggs! Fry the meatballs for the frond! Nourishing & inexpensive. No more restaurant wedding soup!

Can someone tell me more about the egg additions? Seems very popular in the comments, but I'm not sure if I just beat it and then stir in so it would be "stringy" cooked in the soup or if I do something else.

Loved this! I used 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 mild Italian sausage for the meatballs, which added a nice flavor. Super filling and delicious.

Made this tonight: used 1 pound ground chicken, added Romano to meatball mix, and baked on parchment paper 350 for 20 min.Very pleased!

This is one of my staple soups when it's cold outside. I add a rind of parmesan to the broth but otherwise this is a great recipe!

I made as directed but substituted impossible beef and sausage, and better than bullion not-chicken stock. And, it turned out absolutely amazing. My vegetarian friends who had never had Italian wedding soup loved it.

No way this takes 15 min, or even 45. I made chicken soup from scratch--baked chicken legs and thighs, then added to all the chopped veggies that were sauteing, added 9 c water, cooked for several hours. Cooled, removed chicken, took off the fat. Made 72 meatballs (baked in oven, yummy), cooked pasta (1 cup instead of 1/2 c.), mixed altogether, added spinach and Parmesan cheese. It was a body warming soup, absolutely delicious. I'll make it again, though it needs far more broth.

Also did not add spinach, forgot, it tasted fine without it.

Used potatoes (6) and some rice 1/2 cup instead of pasta. Added very little olive oil to cook veges only, splash. Added cheese rinds and queso fresco about 1/2 - 3/4 cup. Broiled flat pieces of meatball, made things a lot faster and tasted fine. Next time only use meat grease to cook veges.

Don’t use purple carrots lol. Used ground lamb instead of pork. Made a double batch and saved the other half (and froze them). Baked the meatballs like the other comment. Don’t add meatballs until serving so they’re not over cooked. For soup: added a teaspoon of turmeric, 2 bay leaves and a Parmesan rind. Add a splash of white wine while deglazing vegetables. Also added frozen peas and Dino kale.

Made this for a friend who needs some comfort and it is delicious. I should have checked the salt levels as noted in the recipe bc it was almost too salty. (Full disclosure, I used veggie stock and impossible meat to make the meatballs as my friend is vegetarian.) I love this soup!

This was easy and delicious. A squeeze of lime or lemon to the bowls before topping with the Parmesan is a nice addition.

Delicious! I had some fennel that needed to go, so I added it to the onion mixture and used TJ’s meatballs to save time, which I browned first.

I’ve been making this soup for 30 years. I do it a bit differently to this. I use ground Turkey seasoned with garlic, a bit of salt and oregano or basil, for meatballs and cook the meatballs directly in the broth. It flavors the soup this way. I also use escarole as the leafy green, but I suppose spinach would be good. It takes me a while longer cause I make the broth from chicken parts and I need to debone the chicken and strain the broth.

So good!! The acini de pepe needed at least five minutes longer, with me turning up the heat gradually to medium high, to get tender. Should have come to a more robust boil before simmering.