Italian Wedding Soup

Hello again everyone,

And now for our third installment.  Italian Wedding Soup.

Why did we choose this Italian Wedding Soup? As the weather has become chilly, it just seemed like a good day to make soup.  So Nikki turned to one of her staples, and let me tell you, the condo smelled incredible as I came home from work.

Okay step one select wine.  We went with a Sauvignon Blanc from Root 1.  Why did we choose this wine?  I'll be honest, it was the best looking bottle on the shelf in my price range.  Nikki said she wanted a white to go with this meal so I stopped at Tony's, our local Polish grocery store, to see what they had.  I know what you are thinking, "You are going to the Polish store to buy wine that is going with an Italian Wedding Soup." In the end the wine was a little weak and didn't stand up to the soup.  That didn't stop us from killing off the bottle, as you'll see in the photos below.  

What to watch?  Well one of our favorite shows is on Thursdays, so we wanted to get in the mood to watch it.  So Vampire Diaries Season One was our selection.  

And now how we did it - 

Ingredients

4 Quarts low sodium chicken broth
2 Cups water
1 1/2 cups of white wine - we used a light sauvignon blanc
2 Cups baby carrots cut generously
6 - 8 cloves of garlic - minced finely
1 package of frozen spinach - average size around 10 onces
1 lb ground       
1 small yellow onion, grated
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
2 eggs lightly beaten 
1/2 Cup fresh bread crumbs
1/2 tsp. salt, plus more to taste
1/2 tsp. pepper plus more to taste
2 Tbs. vegetable oil    
2 cups dried white beans - prepared as instructed on the package

Directions -  
In a 7.5 or larger Dutch oven over medium-high heat, combine the broth, water, carrots, the 1/2 Tbs. garlic and the spinach.
Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the carrots are tender, about 30-40 minutes

Meanwhile, n a large bowl, combine the ground pork, onion, the 1/2 cup cheese, the eggs, bread crumbs, the 1tsp garlic, the 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper.  Mix briefly with your hands.  Form the mixture  into 1-inch balls and place in oven safe pan.
Bake the meatballs at 400 degrees for 12 - 15 minutes or until brown.  About 5 minutes per side will do.  Do this in batches and then transfer to a paper lined plate to drain some of the excess oil.

Add the meatballs and the white beans to the soup and simmer until the meatballs are cooked through, about 15 minutes.  Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle the soup your favorite soup bowls, top with grated cheese, and garnish with your selection of fresh bread.
  

And for dessert we were in the mood for a little more wine so we chose Devil's Head Red from Karma Vista Vineyard.  It was a gift form a bride and groom whose wedding we photographed earlier this year.  It was really good, but a little on the sweet side.  Nikki fixed that the next day by adding a little Cooks Champagne, and viola the perfect champagne dessert cocktail.

This time however we did save some for the freezer, and even supplied drive through for one of our favorite customers.

We have already come up with the theme for our next entry.  So stay tuned and get ready for some football.

Until next time, Reservations Recommended, Walk-ins Always Welcome!

Joe and Nikki