So the thought of meatballs in soup 🍲 never sat well with me and as you know from my “don’t knock em til you try em” recipe, turkey meatballs weren’t something I ever wanted to eat. But if cooking has taught me anything it’s that once you start using ingredients you previously thought were gross, you can be pleasantly surprised with their deliciousness factor. Essentially just face your fears–it’s a good lesson. I have yet to be disappointed in trying something new.

Ground turkey meat is pretty gross looking, amirite? But my turkey meatballs truly are awesome, and this soup is so comforting and flavorful. My sister and I made this soup together and were so excited for leftovers the next day. Truly a healthy and warm meal on a cold or rainy day!

Ingredients:

For the soup-

• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 of a yellow onion, chopped
• 2 small or 1 large zucchini, diced
• 1 large can San Marzano tomatoes
• 1 container chicken broth
• Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
• Fresh basil
• 1/2 lb pasta
• Salt & Pepper

Meatballs-

Turkey Meatball recipe here – The only changes I made to this recipes is that I rolled them smaller and sauteed them in a little bit of olive oil. I recommend doing them in batches so there’s room for you to move them around. They are very delicate until you start to brown them. I also used 2 lbs of meat and increased the recipe over all to make extra for leftovers but you can keep it the same.

Start with sauteing the onions, then add carrots and celery for 4-5 minutes.

Then add zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Pour in the canned tomatoes and chicken broth. Add fresh basil leaves and a bay leaf.

Then carefully add your meatballs back in. Bring to a low boil and then lower to simmer. Let the sauce cook at least until the turkey meatballs are cooked through. I recommend a solid 20-30 minutes to let all the flavors combine.

You can add pasta or not, and cook it separate in water or together in the soup. It’s obviously easier to throw the pasta in but please beware that it will soak up a lot of your liquid. Turn off when your noodles are al dente because they will continue to cook.

Serve with fresh cheese and parsley for garnish. Nosh n Mangia!