Escarole, small pasta, and ground turkey meatballs in a chicken broth.
It's a filling soup, but not overwhelming, typical of Southern Italian cooking. It is particularly good when prepared with a homemade chicken broth.
1 | onions, finely chopped | 200 g | |
1 sprig | rosemary, fresh, finely chopped | 5 g | |
1 | escarole | 400 g | |
1/4 cup | olive oil | 65 mL | |
5 cups | chicken broth | 1.25 L | |
2/3 cup | orzo or risoni (tiny pasta for soups) | 90 g | |
2 | green onions/scallions, finely chopped | ||
1 | eggs size large | ||
220 g | ground turkey, or ground chicken | ||
4 tbsp | bread crumbs | 30 g | |
1/3 cup | Parmesan cheese, freshly grated | 16 g | |
1 pinch | salt [optional] | 0.2 g | |
ground pepper to taste [optional] | |||
2 cloves | garlic, minced then mashed | ||
1 tbsp | lemon juice, freshly squeezed | 1/2 lemon |
If you cannot find «risoni», the pasta with the size and shape of rice grains, any other tiny pasta for soups will do. They are all beautifully shaped and poetically named. The most common ones are : «stelline - little stars», «farfalline - little butterflies», «orzo - barley», «pastina - tiny pasta».
Make the soup
Finely chop the onion and the fresh rosemary leaves (removed from the stem). Wash the escarole, spin-dry, then cut it crosswise into 1 cm strips. Set aside.
Heat half of the oil in a large saucepan over moderate heat. Add the onion and rosemary, then cook, with stirring, until the onion is softened, about 5 min. Add the escarole, stir to coat it with oil, then cover and cook 2 min. Pour in the broth, then bring to a boil. Stir in the pasta, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the pasta is cooked al dente, about 10 min.
Make the meatballs
While the soup simmers, mince the scallions, then put them in a bowl. Add the egg, ground meat, bread crumbs, and freshly grated Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper, then combine well. Form the mixture into meatballs about 2 cm in diameter (about 4 meatballs per serving).
Heat the remaining oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the meatballs, then sauté until they are golden-brown on all sides, about 5-6 min.
Finish the soup
Transfer the meatballs to the soup, cover, then simmer 5 min.
Mince, then mash the garlic, stir it into the soup, then pour in the lemon juice. Adjust the seasoning, then serve the soup into pasta bowls.
The components (broth and browned meatballs) may be prepared in advance. However, it's best to do the final combination at the last minute: the soup will loose its light texture if allowed to sit with the pasta and meatballs for too long.
per 1 serving (520 g)
Amount % Daily Value |
Calories 380 |
Fat 19 g 29 % |
Saturated
4 g
20 % |
Cholesterol 90 mg |
Sodium 1070 mg 45 % |
Carbohydrate 32 g 11 % |
Fibre 5 g 20 % |
Sugars 3 g |
Net Carbs 27 g |
Protein 20 g |
Vitamin A 23 % |
Vitamin C 20 % |
Calcium 14 % |
Iron 20 % |
Food Group | Exchanges |
---|---|
Starches | 1 ½ |
Fruits | 0 |
Vegetables | 1 |
Meat and Alternatives | 1 ½ |
Fats | 3 |
Surprisingly, a great hit with my kids. They were skeptical at first because of "too much green", but loved the taste. It's a keeper.