Aunt Angie's Italian Wedding Soup

While I'm home for Spring Break, I figured I would try some "tried and true" recipes that have been passed on from generation to generation. And Italian Wedding Soup is a perfect dish to accompany our Sunday Dinner.

Angie (DeLaurentis) Petrash was my great-aunt on my Poppop's side of the family. I won't go into the whole family tree but we like to think that our DeLaurentis side of the family is related to Giada!
According to my Poppop, Angie, like most women in our family, was a great cook. She makes this recipe the same way my great-grandmother would. So needless to say, this recipe is atleast 100 years old.

(Angie is in the Blue Dress, Top Row far right and my Poppop is Top Row far Left)

Growing up in Summit Hill, Pennsylvania the DeLaurentis family would only have this soup on special occasions, probably because meat was too expensive to eat daily. To show you the signs of the times, the first step in the recipe is "make a chicken broth". This goes to show that cooking was an all day affair back in the day. As much as I wanted to make a chicken broth, I cheated and bought stock from the store instead.

(The original recipe)

Ingredients:

Chicken Stock--- 64 oz (2 quart sized cartons)
Endive (or Spinach)--- 1 medium sized head
Parmesan Cheese (grated)--- 1/2 CUP
Eggs--- 4
Salt & Pepper--- Pinch

For the Meatballs:

Ground Beef--- 1/3 LB
Ground Veal--- 1/3 LB
Ground Pork--- 1/3 LB
Parmesan Cheese (grated)--- 1/4 CUP
Egg--- 1
Dried Basil--- 2 TBSP
Salt & Pepper--- Pinch

STEP BY STEP:

• 1* Make a Chicken Broth (had to put that in there, but feel free to use stock from the store)

• 1. Preheat oven to 375F

• 2. Mix beef, veal, pork, cheese, egg and seasoning together

• 3. Shape into tiny meatballs, and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper

• 4.Bake meatballs at 375F for 25-30 minutes

• 5. Finely chop endive into small pieces and squeeze out excess water

• 6. Add endive to a mixing bowl along with cheese, whisked eggs, salt and pepper. Mix well.

• 7. Heat a frying pan to Medium heat, oil once hot and drop endive mixture into the pan by using a tablespoon

• 8. When lightly brown underneath, turn and lightly brown the other side. (According to Angie, they should look like small pancakes) 

• 9. Once all are cooked and cool, cut into small squares  

• 10. In a large pot, add the endive squares and meatballs to chicken broth and simmer for 1 hour. Sprinkle 2 more tablespoons of grated cheese into soup.

And that's it! Hope you enjoy my Great Aunt Angie's recipe!