Italian Wedding Soup

Instructions

1. Prepare the ingredients:

   Wash and dry the fresh produce. Finely chop the spinach. Peel and mince the garlic. Peel and small dice the onion. Peel and small dice the carrot. Small dice the celery. Pick the parsley leaves off the stems; discard the stems.

2. Form the meatballs:

   In a medium bowl, combine the ground chicken, breadcrumbs, ¼ of the onion, half the garlic, half the Parmesan cheese and half the parsley (roughly chopping the leaves just before adding). Season with salt and pepper; stir to thoroughly combine. Using your hands, form the mixture into 24 to 28 meatballs, each about 1 inch in diameter.

3. Cook the aromatics:

   In a medium pot, heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil on medium until hot. Add the carrot, celery and remaining onion and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, 3 to 4 minutes, or until softened and fragrant.

4. Make the broth & add the meatballs:

   To the pot of aromatics, add the fregola sarda pasta, chicken demi-glace and 3 cups of water; season with salt and pepper. Heat to boiling on high. Once boiling, add the meatballs. Reduce the heat to medium-high and simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 to 6 minutes, or until the meatballs are cooked through. (You can test the doneness of your meatballs by removing one from the pot and cutting it in half.)

5. Finish the soup:

   Once the meatballs are cooked through, stir the spinach into the pot of soup; season with salt and pepper to taste. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer 2 to 3 minutes, or until the spinach has completely wilted. Remove from heat.

6. Plate your dish:

   Divide the finished soup between 2 bowls. Top with the remaining Parmesan cheese and parsley. Enjoy!