Italian Wedding Soup Recipe (with Video)

1. Peel and dice the onion. Peel, trim (cut the ends off) and dice the carrots. Trim and dice the celery.
2. Heat one tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium heat.
3. Add the onion, carrots and celery, plus the dried thyme and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir occasionally until softened, about 5-6 minutes.
4. Add the chicken broth and water to the pot. Turn the heat to high and bring the broth to a boil.
5. While you wait for the broth to boil, make the meatballs: In a large mixing bowl, add the beef, pork, egg, nutritional yeast, parsley, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Use your hands to blend everything together. Or add everything to the bowl of a stand mixer and blend using the paddle attachment on low speed.
6. Using a small cookie scoop or spoons, scoop out a scant tablespoon of the mixture onto a baking sheet. Set a glass of warm water next to the baking sheet and use it to get your palms damp. Then roll each meatball between your palms until it's shaped like a ball. You'll have to re-wet your hands every 5-6 balls or otherwise the mixture gets sticky.
7. Trim off and discard the root end of the escarole and chop into roughly 1" pieces.
8. Once the broth has reached a boil, carefully drop in the meatballs (I like to start in the middle and make my way around the pot in ever-widening circles) and then the greens.
9. Reduce the heat to medium so the broth is at a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes (starting from the time you dropped in the meatballs and veggies).
10. Taste the broth. If you used low-sodium chicken broth, it will probably need more salt and pepper. I usually add about 1/2 teaspoon more salt and 1/4 teaspoon more pepper.
11. Ladle into bowls and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, if desired.