Bruce's Wedding Soup
This is my take on a simple wedding soup. I make it for my family occasionally and it usually doesn't last very long before being eaten.
This is my take on a simple wedding soup. I make it for my family occasionally and it usually doesn't last very long before being eaten.
- Carbohydrate 1.15410788358203 g
- Cholesterol 12.682453580198 mg
- Fat 0.941326452964308 g
- Fiber 0.0903875026758261 g
- Protein 1.40664338199482 g
- Saturated Fat 0.338444933654086 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (11g)
- Sodium 9.70752934768775 mg
- Sugar 1.06372038090621 g
- Trans Fat 0.156717511720636 g
- Calories 19 calories
Step-by-step
- Combine Ground beef, eggs, parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, basil, and onion powder and mix together thoroughly.
- Roll the mixture into 3/4 inch balls and place them on a greased or non stick cookie sheet.
- Bake in oven @ 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.
- Long enough to render out some of the grease from the meat.
- In a large soup pot combine the chicken broth and spinach.
- Boil for about 10 minutes then add the cooked meatballs from above.
- Bring to a boil for 5 more minutes.
- Cook Orzo noodles separately in a different soup pot in boiling water for 10 minutes.
- Drain the pasta and add it to the soup.
- Simmer for about a half hour and enjoy.
- Sprinkle more grated parmesan over the soup when serving for added flavor.
How many quarts of broth can this pot actually hold without boiling over when the pasta goes in? Scaling a soup recipe requires calculating liquid volume against the displacement of meatballs and expanding orzo. A standard eight-quart stockpot handles ninety-six ounces of chicken broth safely, leaving sufficient headspace for rolling boils. Doubling the batch demands a twelve-quart vessel, otherwise the spinach and orzo crowd the surface. Ground beef release rates dictate initial meatball pre-baking. Forming three-quarter-inch spheres ensures even rendering during the ten to twelve minutes at three hundred fifty degrees Fahrenheit on a nonstick sheet. Overcrowding the pan traps moisture and prevents proper browning. Mixing bread crumbs, parmesan, eggs, and seasonings into the raw beef creates binders that shrink uniformly under heat. Separate boiling of the orzo pasta prevents excess starch from clouding the broth base. Starch molecules gelatinize rapidly in rolling water; cooking pasta directly in the soup thickens the liquid into a heavy stew consistency. Drain the orzo thoroughly at the ten-minute mark before introducing it to the broth. Frozen spinach releases variable water content depending on brand and thaw state. Squeeze excess liquid from the spinach package before adding it to the broth if a cleaner, less vegetal broth color is desired. Parmesan cheese sprinkled at service provides a final hit of salt and fat. Store leftover soup in airtight glass containers for up to four days in the refrigerator. Orzo continues absorbing liquid during cold storage. Add a splash of fresh chicken broth when reheating cooled portions to restore proper fluid balance.
