Minestra Maritata (Italian Wedding Soup)

The first time I ever had Italian wedding soup was on a vacation in Estes Park, Colorado at a little diner called the Mountain Home Cafe. This is the kind of restaurant that is normally known for it's fluffy morning omelets, hot coffee and cocoa for visiting vacationers, not it's evening soup.  However, we had just stumbled into town late in the evening and were starving as usual.  I don't remember anything else about that meal EXCEPT for the wonderful soup. I instantly fell in love with it and its little meatballs, rich broth and small delicate pasta.    

Fast forward about 6 years and I thought it's about time to try this soup at home!  My kids enjoy the tinned version but I knew homemade would be out of this world.  After settling on a recipe I decided to include something I read somewhere.  I drizzled 2 beaten eggs in to the broth after everything else was cooked.  It's just like you do when you are making Italian Egg Drop Soup (Straciatella).  It really sets it apart from other recipes.

I served it with garlic toast grilled cheese sandwiches that my
family could dunk into the rich broth.  I had a housefull of kids hanging around my house that night and everyone cleaned their bowls!  I'm afraid there's no going back to that tinned kind ever again........my kids are so spoiled!  ;)

Italian Wedding Soup
adapted from food.com

(printable copy)


1 lb. ground beef2 eggs, slightly beaten4 tablespoons breadcrumbs2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, shredded1 teaspoon dried basil1 teaspoon onion powder12 cups chicken broth (about 7 cans)4 cups chopped fresh spinach1 cup orzo pasta, uncooked2/3 cup carrots, finely chopped2 eggs, whisked,to drizzle in brothparmesan cheese, for garnish
In a medium bowl combine, meat, eggs, breadcrumbs, parmesan, basil and onion powder into 3/4" small meatballs. In a large dutch oven, heat broth to boiling, stir in spinach, carrots, orzo and meatballs. Return to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Cook at a slow boil for 10 minutes or until orzo is tender.
Stir often to prevent sticking.   Drizzle eggs into mixture and cook a couple of more minutes untileggs are cooked. Serve with additional Parmesan cheese for garnish. Serves 6 

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