Quick Look at the Best Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
- Ready In: 1 hour!
- Serves: 12
- Main Ingredients: mini meatballs, celery, carrots, fresh kale, chicken broth, cannellini beans, fresh herbs & acini de pepe pasta.
- Best For: serving a crowd or meal prepping for the week – it makes a big batch!
- Cooking Methods: stove top, slow cooker, plus options to bake the meatballs
- Why You’ll Love It: Here in Minnesota I love nothing more than a cozy bowl of comforting soup in those cold winter months! Our Easy Chicken Wild Rice Soup continues to be one of my favorites, but the flavors in this Italian Style Wedding Soup are absolutely incredible! Perfect for impressing a crowd or a simply family dinner and then enjoy the leftovers all week long!
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Key Ingredients + Substitutions
Be sure to see the recipe card below for a full listing of ingredients, instructions, and estimated nutritional information.
- Ground Beef & Ground Pork – love this combination for these Italian mini meatballs, but feel free to use Italian sausage or any other ground meat.
- Acini de Pepe – the traditional pasta used in this homemade soup recipe, but orzo or a gluten-free pasta could also be used.
- Fresh Kale – highly recommend using either kale or fresh spinach for the added flavor and texture but they could also be omitted.
- Fresh Herbs – these always kick the flavor up a notch, use some from the garden or pick them up at your local grocery store.
How To Make Italian Wedding Soup
Step 1 – Put all of the meatball ingredients in a bowl and mix to combine.
Step 2 – Take small portions of the mixture and roll into meatballs.
Step 3 – Now, sear the meatballs in a large soup pot.
Step 4 – Remove the meatballs, deglaze the pot with a little broth, and sautรฉ the veggies.
Step 5 – Add the broth and remaining soup ingredients.
Step 6 – Simmer for 10-15 minutes and cook the acini de pepe in a separate pot.
Best Ways To Serve Italian Wedding Soup
First, the toppings! We highly recommend that you top this soup with a large dollop of basil pesto and a generous amount of freshly grated parmesan cheese. It is just so good! On the side you can serve it up with some buttered slices of sourdough bread, crusty bread, or even a few slices of easy grilled bread. It is simply what dreams are made of!!
Crockpot Italian Wedding Soup
- Follow Steps 1 & 2, as written. Begin Step 3 and then after the vegetables have sautรฉed they can be added to the slow cooker with the seared meatballs and the rest of the soup ingredients.
- Give it all a mix, cover, and cook on the high setting for 2-4 hours or low setting for 4-6 hours.
- Before serving, leave it on high or turn it up to high, add the acini de pepe pasta and let it cook for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Storage & Freezer
- Fridge: leftover soup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. For best results, store the soup separate from the pasta, to prevent it from getting soggy.
- Freezer: after it has cooled, pour into freezer-safe containers (make sure you leave a bit for expansion), and store in the freezer for 1-2 months. Wait to cook the pasta until thawing and reheating. It is NOT recommended to freeze the soup with the pasta in it. It will become very mushy.
Italian Wedding Soup FAQs
Why do they call it Italian wedding soup?
The “wedding” part of this soup originates from the Italian phrase “minestra maritata” which means “married soup”. So why is it a married soup? Because it describes the marriage of the ingredients that give this soup it’s amazing flavor! These traditional wedding soups always have a combination of fresh vegetables and meat.
Can I use other vegetables in Italian wedding soup?
Yes, use any vegetables that you have on hand or prefer. Carrots and celery are traditionally found in most homemade soup recipes, but the kale could also be switched out for fresh spinach.
Other Homemade Soup Recipes You Might Like
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Make this cozy & comforting bowl of Italian Wedding Soup that is perfect with shaved parmesan cheese and crusty bread!
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Soup:
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter, sub ghee, plant-based butter or olive oil
- 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 medium carrots, sliced
- 3 celery stalks, sliced
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 15 ounces canned cannellini beans, drained
- 1 tablespoon white wine
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more, to taste
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 easy herb bundle
- 1-2 handfuls fresh kale or spinach
- 3/4-1 cup acini de pepe
Toppings:
- homemade basil pesto, or store-bought
- parmesan cheese, grated or shaved
- sourdough bread with butter
Instructions
- Form Meatballs: Combine Meatball ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl. Stir to combine. Take approx. 1/2 – 1 tablespoon of the mixture (depending upon how small or big you want them) and form into meatballs.ย
- Sear Meatballs: Bring a large Dutch Oven (5.5qt) to medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil; swirl to coat the pan. Sear meatballs (in batches) on all sides until they are nice and browned. Remove from Dutch Oven (they won't be fully cooked, that's okay we don't want them to be yet) and place on a plate; set aside.ย
- Deglaze Pan and Make Soup: Add a splash of the chicken broth (the rest will be used later) and use a spatula to scrape up the bits from the bottom of the pan.ย Add 2 tablespoons butter and let melt.ย Add 2 teaspoons garlic and move around the pan until it becomes fragrant, approx. 30 seconds. Add onion, carrots and celery. Sautรฉ for 3-4 minutes.ย Add chicken broth, 15 ounces canned cannellini beans, 1 tablespoon white wine, 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, 1 easy herb bundle, 1-2 handfuls fresh kale or spinach and the meatballs (along with any juices that have settled on the plate).
- Simmer: Cover and let simmer approx. 10-15 minutes or until veggies are firm but tender and meatballs are cooked through.
- Acini de Pepe: Meanwhile, cook 3/4-1 cup acini de pepe per package instructions or we can show you how to cook acini de pepeย (see Notes).ย ย
- Serving: place some cooked acini de pepe in a soup bowl. Ladle the soup over top. Add a few dollops of basil pesto along with a generous amount of grated or shaved parmesan cheese. Serve with sliced sourdough bread and butter!
Notes
- Option to Bake Meatballs: for best results I recommend searing the meatballs because it adds more flavor to the soup, but baking can simplify things! To bake the meatballs: place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 375 for about 15-20 minutes or until they are fully cooked (this will depend on their size – it could take up to 25 minutes, if they are bigger).
- Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup: Follow Steps 1 & 2 as written. Continue with Step 3, but after the vegetables have sautรฉed everything can be put in the slow cooker. Cover and let cook on HIGH for 2-4 hours or LOW for 4-6 hours. Give it a mix, turn it up to HIGH and add the pasta to cook for 20 minutes before serving.
- Ground Meat: feel free to use a mild Italian sausage, ground turkey, or even ground chicken. Use what you have or what you like!
- Acini de Pepe: I recommend cooking the acini de pepe separately, because this soup makes a lot and you are likely to have leftovers. If the pasta is cooked in the soup it will continue to soak up the broth as it sits – so leftovers may become mushy and not much broth will remain. If you want to cook the pasta in the soup you can, add it in Step 3 when you put the meatballs back in – and maybe add an extra cup of chicken broth.ย
- Acini de pepe substitute: if you can’t find acini de pepe you could sub orzo in a pinch – again I would recommend cooking it separate.ย
- Toppings: you HAVE to try the pesto on top (just grab store bought pesto to make things easy) and lots and lots of parmesan cheese – and then this soup is made for dipping buttered bread in it!ย
- Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.ย
Calories 225kcal
Nutrition
Calories: 225kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 762mg | Potassium: 376mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 2762IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 90mg | Iron: 2mg
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Bridget says
Oh my – this soup is incredible! Will definitely be making it again!
Alyssa says
My husband and boys are not huge soup fans but I challenged myself to make 2024 the year of soup! This was a HOME RUN and everyone agreed to start putting it in rotation. The flavors are delicious!
jane Wiley says
This was amazing! loved it!
Erin says
So happy to hear that, Jane!! Thanks for coming back to leave a review – I appreciate it!
Laura says
My husband said this was his favorite Italian wedding soup! Loved the lemon zest.
Erin says
So happy to hear that!
Jayne says
I have made this soup twice in the last month. SO good, thank you.
Erin says
This was AMAZING! Donโt skip the pesto and definitely dunk some buttered bread in there with shaved Parmesan cheese .. so flipping good and perfect for a cold winter night!
Erin says
Yay!! So happy to hear that!
Sarah says
Simple ingredient list was lovely. I used ground turkey for the meatballs. It was a good soup!
Sarah says
That should have been โgoodโ soup!
Erin says
Yay!! So happy to hear that, Sarah!! Thanks for coming back to leave a review – I really appreciate it!
Elyfercompany says
I love Italian food. I will try this recipe right away.