Olive Garden Italian Wedding Soup

Total Time: 1 hr 5 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 1/2 lb ground beef
• 1/2 lb ground lamb
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
• 1/4 cup fine breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup onion, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• olive oil, for frying
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large onion, minced
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 quarts beef stock, boiling
• 1 lb fresh spinach (washed, stemmed and drained)
• 1/2 lb pastina or 1/2 lb orzo pasta
• salt, to taste
• crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

Recipe

• 1 in a mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese, nutmeg and 1/4 cup onion. add the egg and ground meats and blend well with your hands. shape into little meatballs, about 3/4 inch to one inch in diameter.
• 2 brown them in a little hot oil until they are well colored on all sides. drain on a paper towel.
• 3 in the bottom of a large soup kettle or dutch oven, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and saute the garlic and the onion slowly until they begin to disintegrate. do not let them brown or burn. you may need to add a tsp of stock as they cook.
• 4 sprinkle the flour over the onion mixture and stir continuously as you make the roux. stir until the flour turns a light brown. pour the boiling beef stock into the kettle and bring to a boil, stirring to blend well.
• 5 add the pasta and the spinach and simmer until the pasta is tender. adjust the seasonings. return the meatballs to the soup and heat through. serve hot.