Italian Wedding Soup

By mschweickert

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup pesto
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 head escarole (about 1 pound), tough outer leaves removed, roughly chopped
• 4 ounces ditalini pasta (about 3/4 cup)
• Chopped fresh parsley, for topping

Details

Servings 4
Preparation time 20mins
Cooking time 40mins
Adapted from foodnetwork.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Combine the ground turkey, ricotta, pesto, parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. Mix with your hands until just combined. Form into 24 small meatballs (about 1 tablespoon each); transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Broil until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, Italian seasoning and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, until the onion is softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth, 2 cups water, the escarole and ditalini. Cover and bring to a boil, then partially uncover and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook until the pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes.

Add the meatballs and simmer, uncovered, until warmed through, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle each serving with olive oil and sprinkle with parmesan and parsley.

Photograph by Antonis Achilleos