Tomato Meatball Soup
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Cooking time: 50 minutes for menu
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This is an amalgamation of a lot of recipes and my personal tastes. I made it for years before I ever wrote the recipe down, so, it's very flexible, as most soups are. This will be enough for 2 meals. We'll have quesadillas tonight (the rest of the tortillas on Tuesday and Thursday). If you prefer you could just make tortilla chips.
Tomato Meatball Soup Time: 50 minutes
This is a quick soup (as soups go). If you don't have vermicelli you can use and small pasta: orzo, small elbow, stars... Add more chili powder or hot sauce if you like.
16 oz ground beef (500 gr mince)
1 egg
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
4 cups beef stock (32 oz / 900 ml)
2 cups tomato juice (16 oz / 450ml)
2 15 oz cans whole tomatoes (450 gr jar)
1 tbs soy sauce
3 bay leaves
1 tbs basil
1 tsp chili powder
1 onion
3 carrots
3 stalks celery
2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup vermicelli or other small pasta optional - if you like thick soup add it
In large Dutch Oven (soup kettle) heat the beef stock and tomato juice over medium-high heat. Mix egg, breadcrumbs and next 3 ingredients. Add ground beef and mix well. Form into small meatballs, 1" (2.5cm) in diameter. When stock/juice is boiling slowly add meatballs, keeping them separate until they start to cook. Thinly slice carrots into rounds. Slice celery. Chop onion. Shred cabbage: cutting a thick slice off of the side of the head, lay the slice cut side down and cut into 4ths, then, cutting across, slice 1/8" (.6cm) thick. Do not use the core of the cabbage - you'll recognize it when you see, it appears solid. (Save the rest of the head and any un-shredded cabbage, wrapped in film in the fridge.) Chop the tomatoes, reserving the liquid. When soup is boiling again (after addition of meatballs) you can start adding the rest of the ingredients as they are ready. Add all remaining ingredients, (except pasta) stir well, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes until all vegetables are done. If using pasta, add after 15 minutes, and stir every 5 minutes until done. Remove bay leaves and serve.
Cheese Quesadillas Time: 11 minutes
Any flavor of cheese will work in a quesadilla. I'm making these very simply, since they are meant to accompany the soup, rather than be a first course.
2 tortillas
2 oz (60gr) shredded cheese
1 tbs olive oil
Lay one tortilla on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with cheese. Lay the other tortilla on top and press down. Brush the top with olive oil and bake, 400F (200C) for 10 minutes, until golden and hot. Slice in half, then each half into thirds. Place 3 wedges on each plate and serve.
Note: You can also cut the tortillas into triangles, sprinkle on some salt, garlic powder, whatever, and bake until light brown, about 15 minutes - Voila! Taco Chips!
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Cooking Schedule: 50 minutes |
Add remaining ingredients to soup, cover, boil |
Cooking for Two? Or more?
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