Italian Wedding Soup with Quinoa Turkey Meatballs [HMC]

It's funny how soups get their names. The story I always heard about Italian wedding soup was that it had a lot of pizazz in order to impart some heat to the bride and groom for their impending nookie. It turns out that the Italian got mistranslated: it's not Italian *wedding* soup, but Italian *married* soup. So be it. This version will keep some verve in your swerve. Aromatics set the pace: thyme, oregano, and a wonderful brain-booster, sage, kick up the love. The greens come from shredded cabbage and kale added to the soup and lightly wilted. The soup overall is a magnesium blast, leading us to one Italian word that's never mistranslated: *mangia!*

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Step 1

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and saute until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, garlic, thyme, oregano, fennel seed, sage, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and saute for about 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the stock to deglaze the pot, stirring to loosen any bits stuck to the pot, and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half. Add the remaining stock, increase the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the vegetables begin to get tender, about 10 minutes.

Step 2

Use a melon baller or tablespoon to scoop out 24 to 30 balls of the turkey meatball mixture and gently lower them into the broth; make sure they're not too crowded in the pot. Cover and maintain a very gentle simmer so the meatballs don't fall apart as they poach in the soup. After about 4 minutes, add the cabbage and kale. Cook for until the meatballs are cooked all the way through, about another 6 minutes. Stir in the parsley and serve right away.

Step 3

For a vegetarian dish, substitute 2 cups of cooked cannellini beans for the meatballs. You can use a 15-ounce can of cannellini beans, but be sure to give them the spa treatment: drain, rinse well, and then mix them with a spritz of lemon juice and a pinch of sea salt.

Step 4

When you add the meatballs, the temperature of the soup will drop, so you'll need to increase the heat back to a gentle simmer to thoroughly cook the meatballs.

Step 5

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Calories: 138 per serving.