Love hearty soups? Try this Italian Meatball Soup, this Leftover Turkey Soup or this Chicken Dumpling Soup next! This Italian wedding soup recipe is perfect for cold winter days when you’re longing for a comforting and filling meal for the whole family. It’s a bit of a labor of love, but it’s so worth it for the amazing rich flavors in every bite! Of course, you can use meatballs from the grocery store, but in my opinion, nothing beats homemade meatballs from scratch. If you go store-bought, no judgment here! We all need a shortcut sometimes (just don’t forget the Cheddar Bay Biscuits for dunking!). Once you have the meatballs, you’re going to put them into a wonderfully savory soup base with loads of veggies, flavorful broth, and even a bit of parmesan rind that will melt right into the soup to make it even richer! For more hearty soup inspiration, check out my Italian Sausage Gnocchi Soup, this Chicken Rice Soup, and my Tomato Tortellini Soup.
Ingredients Needed:
The ingredient list is longer than some of my soup recipes, but it’s worth it I promise! Even my soup-resistant children love this meatball soup 😉
Meatballs
Bread: use 1 slice of soft bread to give the ground meat more substance when rolling it into meatballs. Meat: use a mixture of ground beef and ground pork. Use lean when available so there is not excess fat in the soup. Cheese: freshly grated Parmesan is packed with flavor! Egg: for binding the ground meat and other ingredients together to form balls. Seasoning: Italian seasoning with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper works great in this recipe for getting those classic Italian flavors in this soup.
Italian Wedding Soup
Vegetables: a classic trio of carrots, celery, and onion will give you a great savory flavor for the base of this delicious soup. Seaoning: freshly minced garlic, Italian seasoning, kosher salt, a bay leaf, and red pepper flakes, make this soup packed with flavor Broth: low-sodium chicken broth works great in this soup to add a depth of flavor, and enables you to control the salt content here. Cheese: use a Parmesan rind as it will soften in the soup while it cooks, giving an amazing umami depth of flavor that you won’t regret! Pasta: I used ditalini pasta, but orzo pasta or anything else very small will work. Acini De Pepe pasta is the traditional choice for Italian Wedding Soup. Spinach: fresh spinach leaves add great color and extra nutrients to this soup.
How to Make Italian Wedding Soup
This classic Italian soup is great for lazy days or special occasions. Full instructions are included in the recipe card below.
Homemade Meatballs
Italian Wedding Soup
Tips and Notes
To bake your meatballs: If you prefer not to have the extra fat and juices from the meatballs in your soup, you can bake them at 400 degrees F for about 8-10 minutes or until browned on the outside. Double your meatballs: These meatballs are a half batch of my Homemade Meatball recipe — so they are easily doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled! I love making a big batch of meatballs at once and having a stash in the freezer. See my original meatball post for storage tips. Prep ahead. This recipe is a labor of love but lots of it can be prepped in advance! You can make the meatballs in advance and refrigerate or freeze them, you could cut the veggies in advance and refrigerate them, or you can use leftover cooked pasta to cut down cooking time.
Italian Wedding Soup Variations
Mix up the veggies. You can add more veg to this soup easily, whether it’s seasonal veg you have a surplus of, or just some of your favorites, pretty much anything tastes great in here. Add some heat. Add some red pepper flakes, chili powder, or a dash of hot sauce when serving this soup to spice it up. Fresh herbs. Try mixing up the seasoning a bit with some fresh herbs instead of dried ones. Cheese. Substitute the parmesan cheese for Pecorino Romano cheese or another similar hard cheese. Meatballs. You can substitute the meatballs for store-bought meatballs in a pinch, but homemade really is the way to go if you have the time! Broth. Swap the chicken broth for vegetable broth or beef broth if you prefer, or use a combination of types. I simply prefer the flavor of chicken broth. Pasta. Any short kind of pasta will work in this recipe. Cheese. A parmesan rind isn’t necessary but adds incredible flavor. If you don’t have one, simply serve it with Parmesan on the side. Leafy Greens. Use any kind of bitter leafy greens to add color and nutrients to this soup. Kale is another great addition! Garnish. Add some fresh parsley, or fresh dill as a garnish when serving.
Serving Suggestions
While this vegetable soup is hearty and filling, it will also go well with some sides to make it go a bit further. We always have bread on our dinner table, but it’s especially good with soup to soak up all of the delicious juices. Mom’s Homemade Buns, my Garlic Bread, or these Homemade Breadsticks are great options for dipping.
More Soup Recipes to Try
Slow Cooker Garlic Parmesan Chicken Stew + Video
The BEST White Chicken Chili recipe
White Lasagna Soup
The BEST Sausage Tortellini Soup
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