Friday, January 30, 2009

Light Italian Wedding Soup

It has been cold here in the midwest - I mean really, really friggin' cold. I don't like it one bit, but I'm coping. One of the ways I try to cope is by eating and drinking lots of hot liquids - lots of tea, lots of soups. I found this recipe in the latest issue of Everyday Food, which actually had 4 soup recipes this month - and was intrigued. First, I'd never made Italian Wedding Soup before and second, it calls for escarole, a vegetable with which I was completely unaware. It looks a lot like lettuce and is actually a part of the endive family - slightly bitter when raw, cooked it mellows out and is pretty darn tasty. Thankfully, my kids are pretty adventuresome when it comes to new veggies. They've tried kale, swiss chard, broccoli rabe, and others - most of which were a hit. They really liked this soup a lot, but if your kids might balk at the escarole, you could easily substitute spinach.
I think the idea of little meatballs in the soup appealed to my kids too, so it wasn't hard to get them to try it.
This recipe was really easy and came together in about a half an hour. I only slightly deviated from the recipe, adding some oregano and additional water and it turned out to be really delicious.

Light Italian Wedding Soup
from the Everyday Food January/February 09 issue
makes 6 servings

1 pound ground dark-meat turkey (93 percent lean) I used a 1.25 lb tray of Jenny-O Turkey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes in juice
2 heads escarole (2 pounds total), cored, trimmed, and coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 cups water

Directions
In a bowl, combine turkey, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Using 1 tablespoon for each, roll mixture into balls. The ideal tool for this is a small scoop - I used a teaspoon sized scoop and kind of mounded the meatball mix on the end.

In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Cook onion, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add broth and tomatoes (with juice) and oregano; bring to a simmer. Add meatballs; cook, without stirring, until meatballs float to surface, about 5 minutes.

Add as much escarole to pot as will fit. Cook, gradually adding remaining escarole, until wilted and meatballs are cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Thin soup with water if desired (I used 2 cups); season with salt and pepper. Serve soup sprinkled with more Parmesan.

Nutritional Info per serving
250 calories
9.8 grams fat (3g Saturated)
23.6 grams protein
19.3 grams carbs
4.8 grams fiber
WeightWatchers Point Value per serving: 5

I hope you try this soup at your house and please, let me know how you and your family liked it!




6 comments:

Cathy said...

Laura!!!! I am so glad that you are back! It sounds like your family had a fabulous vacation at WDW!!! We are hoping to go again in January '11. I am already excited. So glad to know that it is a good time to go, crowd-wise. Congrats on finishing the half -- what an accomplishment!

This soup looks incredibly delicious. Just what we need on these cold days. It's on my list!

Donna-FFW said...

This soup looks perfect for a cold day. I love wedding soup. I am always trying new versions. Yours sounds great.

Sara said...

I've never made this before, but I want to! It looks delicious.

Netts Nook said...

Glad to see your back the soup looks great.

Matt's Kitchen said...

I saw this in Everyday Food and have been meaning to try it. Giada di Laurentiis has a version of this soup that is absolutely delicious.
I agree with you about this midwest winter. I am ready for spring!

Anonymous said...

Love the blog. Your sister told me about it and this looks YUMMY! I will be back often to see what you are cooking. I started a blog for us men to help in the kitchen.