Italian Wedding Soup

Need to hint to your honey about the big day, or looking for a calming comfort food? Think of this as a first-rate chicken soup with mini-meatballs and loads of flavor.

This recipe is from Holly Clegg's trim&TERRIFIC Too Hot in the Kitchen: Secrets to Sizzle at Any Age - 200 Simple and Sassy Recipes.

Ingredients

Makes 12 (1-cup) servings with 3-4 mini meatballs

Soup

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 8 cups fat-free chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 cup orzo pasta
• Mini Meatballs (recipe follows)
• 6 cups fresh baby spinach
• Salt and pepper to taste

Mini Meatballs

Wait until you try these meatballs!

• 1 pound ground sirloin
• 1 egg
• 1 egg white
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Soup

1. In large nonstick pot coated with nonstick cooking spray, sauté onion, celery, carrots and garlic until tender, 7 minutes. Add both broths and oregano.
2. Add orzo. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and cook 5 minutes.
3. Add Mini Meatballs (see recipe), and continue cooking 8 minutes or until meatballs are done.
4. Add spinach, cooking a few more minutes until wilted.
5. Season to taste.

Mini Meatballs

1. Combine all ingredients into bowl and shape meat mixture into 1-inch diameter meatballs.

Nutritional Analysis (per serving)

• Calories: 153
• Calories from fat: 19%
• Fat: 3 g
• Saturated Fat: 1 g
• Cholesterol: 40 mg
• Sodium: 433 mg
• Carbohydrate: 17 g
• Dietary Fiber: 2 g
• Sugars: 2 g
• Protein: 14 g
• Dietary Exchanges: 1 starch, 1 1/2 lean meat