Creamy Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs
This Italian wedding soup with turkey meatballs is made even healthier with a sneaky ingredient blended into the creamy broth: cannellini beans. Bringing extra protein and fiber, the cannellini beans join escarole for nutrient packed additions to this year-round favorite soup recipe.
Servings 6
Calories 420kcal
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
- 1 lb ground turkey
- ½ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- ¼ cup grated onion
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 2 eggs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
For the soup:
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 large Russet potato, peeled and cut into ½" cubes
- 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided
- 2 cups water
- 1 15.5-oz can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- Half a bunch escarole
- ½ cup pastina, uncooked
Instructions
For the meatballs:
- Preheat oven to 375°F and spray an 8" x 8" baking dish with cooking spray.
- Add all meatball ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix until just combined. I like to put on disposable gloves and mix everything with my hands.
- Press meatball mixture into the greased pan in an even layer. Bake for 14-15 minutes, or until the mixture is cooked through and the thickest part registers 165°F. Set aside to cool slightly before slicing into cubes.
For the soup:
- Add olive oil to a large pot set over medium to medium-high heat. Once heated, add diced onion and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add garlic, salt, and pepper, and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add cubed potato and saute for 1-2 minutes. Pour in 2 cups of the broth and let simmer and cook for 7-8 minutes.
- Add rinsed and drained cannellini beans and cook for 3-4 minutes. At this point remove the pot from the heat. Blend contents of pot well with an immersion blender, or carefully transfer everything to a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer pureed soup mixture back to the pot, and set the pot back on the stove over medium heat.
- Add remaining 2 cups of broth and 2 cups of water to the broth and stir until combined.
- Add the escarole to the pot and stir. Let the escarole simmer and become tender for about 10 minutes. Add the meatballs and stir to combine.
- Raise heat to medium-high and add dry pastina. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring to prevent the pasta from clumping together (but if that does happen, just break them up with the back of a wooden spoon).
- Once the pasta is tender, serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice (optional).
Nutrition
Calories: 420kcal | Carbohydrates: 26.5g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 4.5g | Cholesterol: 138mg | Sodium: 944mg | Potassium: 523mg | Fiber: 6.8g | Sugar: 3g | Calcium: 160mg | Iron: 4mg
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.