Minestrone And Meatball Soup With Tortellini

Hearty soup

A few years ago I saw this recipe on Bourbon and Brown Sugar’s site. I immediately knew I had to make it. It’s a great recipe, simple to make, hearty and delicious. You can see the link above for the original recipe. I have adapted to my taste making a few alterations and substitutions but keeping with the basic premise of the original. The soup is a real meal, warm and filling and comforting. It is pretty much my favorite soup. I make this every year, many times over and it never fails, it’s a crowd pleaser and although I think it would freeze well I never seem to have any leftover at all. If you have never visited MB’s site and seen the gorgeous and delicious food she cooks up, do yourself a favor and check it out. I used to get notifications by email when she posted new recipes but it stopped so I just followed again. The photo’s are gorgeous and the recipes are delicious. Here is my adaptation of MB’s amazing Hearty Minestrone With Tortellin and Mini Meatballs:

Adapted from a recipe from Bourbon and Brown Sugar

Meatballs:

1 lb ground beef

1 lb ground pork

1 heaping cup fresh breadcrumbs

1/2 cup grated cheese, parmigiano, romano or a mix

2 eggs

1/3 cup chopped parsley

1/3 cup water

salt and pepper

Pre heat oven to 375 degree’s and line a sheet pan with parchment. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl until all the ingredients are incorporated.

Spray a little oil on the parchment and start rolling small meatballs about the size of a quarter and line them up on the sheet pan. I used about half of the meat and froze the rest. It made 35 small meatballs. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until done and lightly browned.

Soup:

1 smallish yellow onion chopped

1 shallot chopped

2 stalks celery chopped

2 carrots chopped

2 cloves garlic chopped

1 1/2 cup chopped (into bite size pieces) uncooked butternut squash

7-8 cups chicken broth

26 oz canned chopped or fresh tomatoes

a piece of rind from parmigiana cheese (always save the rind)

1 medium size zucchini washed and cut into bite size pieces

2 cups fresh baby spinach

1 15 oz can cannellini beans drained and rinsed

the cooked meatballs.

8 oz fresh tortellini

Heat some olive oil in a large dutch oven, add the onion, shallot, celery, carrot, garlic and butternut squash and cook until the vegetables become tender, it took about 15 minutes. Add the chicken broth, tomato and rind from the cheese. Bring to a boil and cook on medium heat for 30-45 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Add the beans, zucchini, spinach and meatballs and let simmer for about 30-35 minutes. Soup will be quite thick with all the ingredients. Add the tortellini at the end simmering for about 10 minutes and serve with some grated cheese and warm bread and butter,  a good glass of wine and a fresh salad make this an outstanding cold weather meal.