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Healthy Italian Wedding Soup

Michelle — Wed, 03 Feb 2016 15:22:16 +0000

I love making traditional foods and I always look up the wikipedia definition for fun. Wedding soup is simply a mistranslation of the Italian language phrase “married soup” which is a reference to the fact that vegetables and meat go well together. Love that! It’s like it’s own love story. Leave it to me the Pisces to find romance in food Anyway, usually wedding soup is some type of meatball mixed with a green (usually cabbage, escarole, spinach or kale). Usually a cavetelli, orzo or some type of pasta is mixed in but wasn’t in the traditional soup, you can choose to add or not. Rice also works!

Healthy Italian Wedding Soup

CourseMain Dish
CuisineItalian

Servings5-6 people

Prep Time15 minutes

Cook Time15 minutes

Ingredients

8 oz ground turkey
8oz ground sausageany other combo of meats can be used
1/4cup almond meal(1/2 cup if no cheese)
1/4cup grated parmesan cheeseoptional
1 egg
1/4cup coconut milkany other milk will do, water works too
1tsp salt
1/2tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/8tsp ground nutmeg
2cloves crushed garlic
4cups chicken broth
4cups water
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
1tsp onion powder
fewhandfuls frozen spinach
1lbs pasta of choiceoptional

Instructions

In a large bowl mix meat, egg, milk, almond meal, cheese, salt, basil, oregano, nutmeg and 1 crushed garlic clove. mix gently with hands.
Meanwhile start boiling the chicken broth, onion powder, salt to taste and water. Roll the meat into meatballs (whatever size you like) and drop into the boiling broth. Turn heat down and simmer for at least 10 minutes until cooked through.
In a separate pan add a little olive oil and sauté the carrots, celery, garlic and spinach for about 5 minutes. When softened add to the broth and meatballs.
If using rice or pasta boil separately and add to finished soup. I had one bowl without and it was delicious. I added some white rice and a squirt of fresh lemon juice to the second bowl. Even better!

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Chipotle Meatballs

Michelle — Sun, 24 Jan 2016 20:58:04 +0000

Cans of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce line my pantry at all times. That smokey flavor adds zip to just about anything….eggs, meat, rice. This recipe is easy and a crowd pleaser. I like to serve with some mexican rice for a quick and easy dinner. Frontera products made by Rick Bayless are my easy go to seasoning blends for tacos, slow cooked meats and chili. So it’s no surprise that this recipe is pretty much his spicy chipotle meatball recipe with a few tweaks! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Chipotle Meatballs

CourseMain Dish
CuisineMexican

Servings4 people

Prep Time10 minutes

Cook Time20 minutes

Ingredients

1lbs ground turkeycould use pork, chicken or beef
1 egg
2cloves crushed garlic
1tsp dried basil
1tsp salt
1/2cup cooked rice
15oz can tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes
1-2 canned adobe peppers in adobo
1tbsp adobo sauce from can
1tsp oregano
2cloves crushed garlic
1/2cup chicken broth
chopped parsley

Instructions

Mix meat, egg, 2 cloves garlic, salt, basil and rice in bowl.
Form into approx 12 meatballs and bake at 400 for about 10 minutes. They will be sticky, wet your hands if you are having a problem forming the balls.
Meanwhile mix the tomato, peppers, sauce, oregano and crushed garlic in a large pan, simmer while meatballs cook
Add meatballs to sauce and add about 1/2 cup of chicken broth to thin sauce slightly. Let meatballs cooking sauce for a few minutes before serving. Season sauce with salt if needed.
Serve over rice and garnish with chopped parsley! Yum!

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The Best Meatballs!

Michelle — Wed, 16 Sep 2015 17:16:00 +0000

Easiest go to meal that the whole family will love? Meatballs! I’m partial to asian style meatballs but my family loves basic beef meatballs with tomato sauce over pasta or zoodles! I’ve tried many recipes and techniques over the years and here are a few facts I’ve learned:

1. Seasoning does matter, even if you are using sauce, the meatball needs to stand on it’s own. 1 tsp of salt and other herbs per lbs of meat is a good rule of thumb.

2. Eggs are not added for moisture, they are there to bind the meat to the breadcrumbs, cheese and seasoning. My key for perfectly moist meatballs? Adding a little warm water at the end and using your hands not a fork to mix everything together!

3. Make sure your hands are wet or oiled when rolling the balls, this keeps them from sticking to you and makes it easier to get uniform size.

4. You can bake the meatballs in the oven, but I find searing them in a pan first even with a light coating of olive oil sears the outside and makes them better. I cook mine in the pan and then add sauce and let them simmer.

What am I missing? Please send me a note or comment if you have any other tricks!

The Best Meatballs

CourseMain Dish
CuisineItalian

Servings12 meatballs

Prep Time10 minutes

Cook Time10-60 minutes

Ingredients

1lbs grass-fed ground meat
1clove garliccrushed
1 egg
1/2cup good grated parmesan cheese
1tsp sea salt
1/2tsp black pepper
1 cup good bread crumbsfresh or Trader Joes* see note
3/4cup lukewarm water
1/4 olive oil

Instructions

Add the garlic, egg, cheese salt and pepper to the meat.
Add bread crumbs and slowly add the warm water in as you mix with hands. The mixture should be very moist but still hold its shape.
Roll the meat into balls while hands are wet. Make about 12 with 1 lbs of meat. Heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the meatballs turning to brown all sides. Turn heat down and cover until meatballs are cooked through.
You can add the sauce right to the pan or first remove meatballs to a lined plate to drain and wipe out the pan. Add back in meatballs and sauce.
Serve with fresh parsley and extra parm cheese as a meal or over whole grain pasta or zoodles!

Recipe Notes

* most bread crumbs contain crap! Read the label you would be surprised. Fresh are best but Trader Joes carries two types that only have a few ingredients. You can also use gluten free breadcrumbs or for grain-free substitute the bread with almond flour. I've tried it and don't notice a difference!

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