Sarah's stupendous Italian Wedding Soup
Meatballs:
1/2 lb. ground beef (I used ground sirloin on a whim)
1/2 lb. ground pork
1 c italian bread crumbs
1 tsp garlic
1 egg
Mix everything together and form meatballs (about the size of your thumb). Pan fry until they are cooked all the way through. I added a bit of olive oil to the pan, but I don't think that's necessary.
Soup:
6 c chicken broth
1.5 c pasta (I used the little ball pasta)
spinach cut into strips
chicken bouillon
veggie pepper (if you have it use it, but if not, just use black pepper instead)
water
Boil the chicken broth and ~1 cup of water on medium. When it boils add the pasta, spinach and cooked meatballs. Let it simmer until the pasta is cooked. Okay, here is where things got improvisational. I found the chicken flavor to be too weak, so I started adding chicken bouillon. I ended up adding 2 cubes of Knorr chicken bouillon, but feel free to add more or less as to suit your taste. I added ~1-2 tsp of the veggie pepper. Again, this is to my taste. If you only have black pepper, only add about 1 tsp, since more than that is likely to be too much. Finally, I kept having to add water as the pasta kept growing and growing. Again, add water till you get a consistency of soup that you're satisfied with.
Note: the pasta will continue to absorb liquid, even after removing it from the heat. When I make this again, I will probably reduce the amount of pasta to one cup. However, if you are using a pasta other than the little round balls, 1.5 cups would probably be a good number (lower packing efficiency..yes, I am a materials scientist).
Double check the flavor after adding the water to ensure that it's still to your liking. Adding extra water will dilute the chicken and spice flavor, but not necessarily enough to necessitate adding more of each.
Finally, serve up and enjoy!
EMILY SAYS: Ooooh, tasty! And the little round pasta balls were just cute. This will be great to make in the middle of winter.
LYNDA SAYS: This was my favorite dish this time around. The flavor was marvelous. I couldn't figure out what it was reminding me of, and then late last night realized it tasted some ways similar to a soup I had once (and LOVED) at Chef Jean Louis. Simply splendid, and gloriously round. 8)