Red Chard Soup with Meatballs
Thanksgiving is next week and our fondest memory of this heartwarming holiday is our Mom Mom’s Escarole Soup also know as Italian Wedding Soup. I’ve been craving the comfort you get from this soup but I can’t always find escarole so I decided to use red chard in it’s place. The deep red from the chard changes the color of the soup but I enjoy a tomato like broth so I also added tomato paste for richness.
The meatballs are also a fun addition and add hardiness. This is also a great dish to get your kids involved. Don’t let rolling tiny meatballs be a tedious task, your kids will love this!
Add some homemade or store bought croutons and it can easily be served as a main course! Don’t forget to sprinkle a little bit of parmesan cheese!
Bon Appetito, Christina 🙂
- Soup
- 4-5 stalks of Red Chard
- 1 Yellow Onion diced
- 3-4 stalks of Celery
- 2 Cartons (32 oz each) of Chicken Broth
- 1 small can (6oz) of Tomato Paste
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Meatballs
- 1 pkg Lean Ground Beef
- 1-2 TBSP Parm Cheese
- 1/2 Yellow Onion (finely diced and sautéed)
- 1 slice of bread soaked in milk and broken into pieces
- 1-2 TBSP Italian Bread Crumbs
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- In a large stock pot sauté onions & celery in olive oil with salt. Clean and dry red chard and chop into roughly. When onions & celery are soft, add chard and cook for couple minutes. Add chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and add tomato paste. Season with pepper and more salt if needed. Continue to simmer on low heat.
- Prepare your meatballs.
- Soak one slice of bread in a bit of milk until soaked and you care able to break apart into pieces. Saute’ your diced onion with a little bit of salt & olive oil. In a mixing bowl, mix together ground beef, onions, breadcrumb, parm cheese & soaked bread. Add salt & pepper. In the same pan you sautéd your onions, cook a small piece of meatball mixture to make sure it is well seasoned.
- Now form your mini meatballs to your desired size. Brown in a pan with some oil but do not fully cook them. Drain your mini meatballs on a dish with paper towel.
- Bring the heat up a bit on your soup and gently add your meatballs. Continue to simmer soup until your meatballs are fully cooked and all flavors have combined nicely.
