Good morning! I made a wonderful meatball soup a few nights ago. I was inspired by Elise Bauer's Albondigas Soup recipe posted on Simply Recipes. I bookmarked this soup about a year ago, but hadn't gotten around to trying it. When I found that Costco started carrying some gluten-free meatballs I knew I was ready to test it out. Elise makes her own, which you can too, but you'll need to fully cook them before throwing into the crock. They will disintegrate otherwise.
I really liked this soup, and what I liked EVEN more about it was that I made do with pantry and freezer stuff instead of going to the store, which makes it "free"! I'm speaking with Elise in July at BlogHer on the FoodBlogging During a Recession Panel. The Crock-Pot is such a useful tool when creating low cost meals for you and your family.
The Ingredients.
4 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup baby tomatoes, quartered
1 cup baby carrots, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/4 cup prepared pasta sauce (I used pizza sauce; it worked!)
1/2 teaspoon dried mint
15-18 frozen meatballs, Italian or similar flavored (The Coleman Natural say gluten free right on the label)
1 cup frozen peas (if you stir them in 20 min before serving, they will retain their color. I did not do that, and my peas looked canned. I wish I had waited and stirred them in at the end.)
The Directions.
Use a 6 quart slow cooker. Put the broth, vegetables, pizza sauce, and mint into your slow cooker. Stir in frozen meatballs. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours. The seasoning from the meatballs is what is going to flavor your soup. The longer and slower you cook the soup, the more flavor the broth will have. Stir in frozen peas 20 minutes or so before serving.
Garnish with a bit of shredded Parmesan cheese.
The Verdict.
Adam and I really liked this soup. I was intrigued by the mint, which is what caused me to bookmark this soup to try so long ago. Elise said that the mint is what really differentiates Albondigas (means "meatballs") Soup from other soups and provides a unique flavor. I was happily surprised by the subtle mint flavor, and how it provided a cooling sensation on my tongue. I wanted a bit of heat, and added some Tabasco to my bowl. Adam ate it as-is, and the kids drank the broth and ate the veggies---no meatballs for them (yet they eat them plain with ketchup all the time...?).
Very cool. Thank you, Elise! I look forward to seeing you again in July.
BlogHer '09">For those who aren't familiar with BlogHer, it is (primarily) a women's networking community and conference for bloggers, although many attend who do not yet blog, they are just interested in learning more about it. The three women founders wanted to create a conference specifically for women bloggers---this is now their 5th year. I went last year, and really enjoyed myself. It's a lot of fun to put faces with screen names, and meet new writers.
I do a bit of work during the week for BlogHerads, which is the ad network BlogHer started to help compensate women for their online writing work.
Adam and I are celebrating our 10-year anniversary this July, and will attend the conference together. Sort of. I think he's mostly looking forward to sleeping in and ordering room service.
related: Save Money by Using Your Crock-Pot Slow Cooker
A Year Ago Today: Ginger Teriyaki Tofu
A Year Ago Yesterday: Dulce de Leche
Totally Together: Managing Children's Art
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