Italian Wedding Soup

For the soup

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 3 stalks of celery, diced
• 8 cups homemade chicken stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 head of escarole, torn into bite sized pieces, or baby spinach
• 1 cup orzo, cooked and drained
• salt and pepper to taste

Begin with the soup. In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil and the red pepper flakes. Add the onion and garlic. Cook the onions until translucent. Add the stock, and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and then simmer for two hours. Cook the orzo and set aside, Cooking the pasta separately from the soup keeps it from soaking up all the soup broth.

Next prepare the chicken meatballs.

• 1 pound of ground chicken breast
• a generous handful of fresh parsley, chopped
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl. Combine gently with a fork. Form into small balls about 1/2 inch in size. I used a small scoop to help form the balls, targeting a total of 40 meatball. Place the meatballs on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes.

To finish the soup:

Remove the meatballs from the oven and place them into the soup. Add the escarole or spinach (which I forgot) and simmer for 20 minutes. To serve, add a portion of the orzo to a soup bowl. Top with soup and meatballs. Stir to distribute the pasta. Serve immediately.