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Prep time
1 hour
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Cook time
1 hour 40 minutes
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Serves
8
Author Notes
This Italian Wedding Soup is packed with iron-rich spinach, lots of fresh herbs, and homemade chicken stock. The chicken, cooked in aromatics, is then added to the final dish, along with tender, spicy pork meatballs for a hearty wintry meal. —Rick Martinez
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Weekend Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
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Stock
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1
large onion, halved
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4
large carrots, divided
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6
large stalks celery, divided
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4
whole garlic cloves, lightly crushed
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2
large bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
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2
bay leaves
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1 teaspoon
black peppercorn
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3 sprigs
fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried
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2 sprigs
fresh oregano (or 1 teaspoon dried
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2 sprigs
fresh rosemary (or 1 teaspoon dried
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4 cups
chicken stock
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Meatballs
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1/2 cup
plain panko breadcrumbs
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1/3 cup
finely grated parmesan, plus more for serving
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1 teaspoon
dried oregano
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1/4 teaspoon
crushed red pepper flakes
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1/3 cup
fresh parsley, finely chopped
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kosher salt, to taste
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freshly ground black pepper, to taste
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1/4 cup
heavy cream
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2
cloves garlic, finely grated, separated
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1
egg, beaten to blend
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1 ½ pounds
ground pork
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Soup
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2 tablespoons
extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for hands
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1/2 cup
white wine
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1 cup
dry ditalini
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2
cloves garlic, finely grated, separated
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1 bunch
mature spinach, torn into 2-inch pieces (about 7 cups)
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1/4 cup
fresh parsley, roughly chopped
Directions
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Cut one half of the onion in half, you should have 2 large wedges; transfer to a large heavy pot or Dutch oven. Cut 2 carrots and 3 celery stalks in half crosswise and transfer to pot with onion. Add whole garlic, chicken breasts, bay leaves, peppercorn, thyme, oregano, 6 cups water, and chicken stock to the pot and bring to a boil, cover and reduce to low, and cook until the chicken is cooked through and tender, 30 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate to cool; shred chicken, discard the skin and bones and set aside until ready to use. Continue to simmer stock covered until the vegetables are tender, 15 minutes more. Strain stock and set aside until ready to use; discard solids and wipe pot clean.
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Meanwhile, make the meatballs. Whisk the panko, parmesan, oregano, red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a medium bowl until combined. Stir in the cream, half of grated garlic, and egg until completely combined.
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Transfer the pork to a large bowl. Pull the ground pork apart with two forks as if you were shredding pulled pork, breaking up the clumps without compacting until very loose. Pour the cream mixture into the meat and use the same pulling technique to mix until all the ingredients are evenly incorporated. Scoop out portions of the meat mixture with a 1 ounce ice cream scoop or use two heaping tablespoons of meat mixture. Lightly oil your hands and roll the meat gently between your hands into balls. Arrange the balls on a rimmed baking sheet. You should have about 24. Cover and chill until ready to use.
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Cut remaining onion, carrot and celery into ½ inch pieces and set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in same large pot over medium-high heat. Add half of the meatballs and cook, turning and rolling occasionally, until they are lightly browned on all sides, about 5 minutes total; remove to a plate. The meatballs will not be cooked through, just browned on the outside. Repeat with the remaining meatballs; remove them to the plate as well.
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Reduce the heat to medium, add the onion, carrots, celery, and remaining grated garlic; season with 1 tablespoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up the browned bits, until the vegetables are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and cook until it's almost completely evaporated, about 3 minutes. Add reserved stock and bring to a boil, reduce to low and simmer until vegetables are just tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Add meatballs and pasta and cook until cooked through, 10 minutes. Stir in spinach and reserved chicken and continue cooking until spinach is wilted and tender, 5 minutes; season with salt. Serve topped with parsley, grated parmesan, freshly ground black pepper, and olive oil.
Rick Martinez is currently living his dream—cooking, eating and enjoying the Mexican Pacific coast in Mazatlán. He is finishing his first cookbook, Under the Papaya Tree, food from the seven regions of Mexico and loved traveling the country so much, he decided to buy a house on the beach. He is a regular contributor to Bon Appétit, New York Times and hosts live, weekly cooking classes for Food Network Kitchens. Earlier this year, he was nominated for a James Beard Award for “How to win the Cookie Swap” in Bon Appétit’s holiday issue.
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