Italian Meatball Soup in Tomato Broth
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I’ve been meaning to bring you this recipe for a few years. We had a version of Italian Meatball Soup in one of Lexington’s best restaurants, Azur, and it inspired me to come back home and make an even better version.
You can keep this grain free or serve with orzo. I served the orzo on the side, as this makes this soup a lot more family friendly (Without the pasta, it’s a perfect keto or low carb soup).
While this is a simple soup, it’s a hearty rustic soup that requires a little bit of finesse.
The original soup had chunky tomatoes, but I refined the broth to a tomato broth using a hand blender. The original soup had arugula, which I love a lot, but I thought kale would hold up much better, and it did. You could use any green you prefer, but I wouldn’t use spinach, unless you only add it raw as you serve it, so it doesn’t disintegrate.
I didn’t make the meatballs super small or bite-sized, because I wanted them to be tender. I made them slightly smaller than usual, baked them for 15 minutes, and added them to the soup about 30 minutes before serving.
The result of this super easy to make recipe was nothing short of spectacular.
The broth is a light tomato broth, the meatballs are grain free and orzo is an option to add in for those in the family who eat pasta.
When I fed it to the family, I added in some cooked orzo. The key to this soup is tender meatballs, sultry tomato broth, greens, and lots of Pecorino Romano cheese.
I talk about this cheese all the time and how we are addicted to it. It’s a sheep’s cheese, whereas Parmesan is a cow’s milk cheese. It aged, dry, salty, tangy and often okay for people who are lactose intolerant. You could even add a dollop of ricotta cheese.
Warm yourself up with this delicious easy soup.
NOTES: You can keep the orzo separate and serve it as an option. This way those who are gluten free or carb counting can thoroughly enjoy this soup too. Let me know how much you’ve enjoyed this soup.
More Ideas for Italian Meatball Soup
- Add any macaroni, such as dittalini, or tiny shells.
- Replace kale with arugula, or spinach.
- Add dollops of ricotta.
- Add rice or cauliflower rice.
- Add a can of white cannellini beans.
- Add any leftover vegetables.
- Add a little heavy cream to the broth.
Soup Bowls
These soup bowls (amazon) are perfect for this soup.
More Italian Style Soups from Spinach Tiger
- Italian Summer Vegetable Soup
- Italian Sausage Lentil and Kale Soup
- Spicy Italian Soup with Sausage
- Italian Eggplant Soup
- Lentil Sausage Soup
- Quick and Easy Ministrone Soup
- Ribolita, a Tuscan Soup
Homemade Italian Meatballs Soup
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds grass fed beef
- 1/2 pound ground pork or more beef
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 cup freshly grated pecorino romano divided
- 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh Italian Parsley divided
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 quarts boxed chicken broth
- 28 ounce San Marzano Tomatoes (can)
- 2 cups kale or spinach
- 1 cup dry orzo optional
Instructions
- Season meat with salt and pepper
- Add remaining ingredients (except greens and orzo )and very loosely, gently mix together. You don't want the meat to be compacted, as that will make the meatballs tough. (Save some parsley for garnishing. Have extra pecorino for topping soup.)
- Form into medium sized balls. You can make these into bite sized meatballs, but I prefer larger meatballs, which are more tender.
- Place foil or parchment paper on baking sheet.
- Bake meatballs for 15 minutes at 375 degrees or until outsides seems browned. Set aside.
- In soup pot, add just enough olive oil to cover bottom of pan. Add can of tomatoes, crushing with your hands. Add in broth. Cook on medium heat until tomato broth is hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Use immersion blender to blend the tomatoes to make a cleaner broth.
- Cook orzo al dente according to directions in separate pot minus one minute. You can also use small macaroni. Add to broth to finish cooking.
- Add in meatballs and optional greens.
- You can choose to serve orzo on the side or put into the soup.
- Serve with parmesan or pecorino romano. Garnish with more parsley.
Notes
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