Category — Italian Food

This is another one of my favorite soup recipes. I saw Giada De Laurentiis (Food Network) make this a few years ago and knew that it would be awesome. So I made it for my parents and it was a huge success. I tried variations of this recipe as well, but none of them were as good as this recipe. Follow this recipe exactly, down to the endive or escarole and I promise you will not be disappointed. This soup with warm your soul!

1 small onion, grated
1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1 large egg
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 slice fresh white bread, crust trimmed, bread torn into small pieces
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
8 ounces ground beef
8 ounces ground pork
Freshly ground black pepper
Soup:
12 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 pound curly endive, coarsely chopped (1 pound of escarole would be a good substitution)
2 large eggs
2 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for garnish
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
To make the meatballs: Stir the first 6 ingredients in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the cheese, beef and pork. Using 1 1/2 teaspoons for each, shape the meat mixture into 1-inch-diameter meatballs. Place on a baking sheet.

To make the soup: Bring the broth to a boil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and curly endive and simmer until the meatballs are cooked through and the curly endive is tender, about 8 minutes. Whisk the eggs and cheese in a medium bowl to blend. Stir the soup in a circular motion. Gradually drizzle the egg mixture into the moving broth, stirring gently with a fork to form thin stands of egg, about 1 minute. Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper.

Ladle the soup into bowls and serve. Finish soup with parmesan cheese if desired.

Simple Meatballs

1/4-cup plain dried breadcrumbs

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup grated Parmesan (fresh is way better than the stuff that comes in the container with the green lid)

1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 small onion, grated finely

2 cloves of garlic, grated finely

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1-pound turkey (or you can do ½ lb ground sirloin and ½ lb pork)

In a large bowl, combine breadcrumbs, eggs, milk, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan and the parsley, and mix well; season with salt and pepper. Add meat and gently combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Shape into bite-size meatballs.

With these meatballs you can make:

Spaghetti and Meatballs (just use your favorite jar of red sauce)

Baked Mostaccioli with Meatballs

Meatball Soup

Meatball Sandwiches