Albondigas - Mexican Meatball Soup

I know, I have posted a lot of Mexican style soups to this blog. But I swear this one is different. I came up with the recipe after reading a few variations and the result was so full of flavor and different from traditional tortilla soups, that I had to share. The broth has a ton of body and bold flavor. And let's get serious, the meatball is having a moment and this soup let's it shine. With holiday cooking and snow on the way, this soup works perfect for nights in when you could use a break from the usual rich and sugary fare.  And though it packs some nutritional punch, it feels decadent and satisfying. Just the way I like my soup.

Albondigas - Mexican Meatball Soup
Forks & Amusement 2011
serves 6

For the Meatballs:
1 egg
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 lb ground beef

1/4 lb chorizo (ground pork if you cannot find, but add some spice if you use it)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all the ingredients, except the meat in a bowl. Add in the meat and gently incorporate the meat so that everything is well combined, but not over worked. Use hands or fork. Place heaping teaspoons of the mixture, gently rolled into balls, onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through. Set aside.

For the Soup (can start making while meatballs cook):
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 Anaheim or other green chili variety, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
6 cups beef stock
2 cups crushed tomatoes
1 - 7oz can chipotle peppers, chopped (deseed if you do not like spice)
1 to 4 teaspoons adobo sauce from the can of chipotle peppers, depending how spicy you like it
2 carrots, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup grated zucchini
1/4 cup uncooked rice
juice of one lime
chopped fresh cilantro and grated cheese for garnish

Heat the oil in a large stock pot over medium heat and sauté the onion, chili, garlic, oregano, and cumin until vegetables are soft. Add the stock, tomatoes, chipotle, adobo, carrots and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes. Add the zucchini and rice and simmer for an additional 30 minutes, until rice is tender. Add in the meatballs and lime juice and heat through. Taste and adjust for seasoning (salt, pepper, more adobo, hot sauce?). Serve hot and garnish with the cilantro and cheese if desired.

Enjoy!
xo
Erin

Just like Mom Used to Make...

My obsession with pasta this last month has gone a little overboard. I have eaten pasta every day now for almost a month in some form or another. Not sure how it happened, but I guess with the change of season my tummy is just into the comfort of this Italian treat. I made this meatball recipe to see if I could go beyond my normal sauce routine and add a little Italian grandmother (not Italian, but I think I was in a former life!) to my daily plate of one of Italy's many culinary treasures. I wanted to keep it simple, but make sure to add a few extra ingredients to make it special. You can make the meatballs whatever size you would like and adjust the cooking time. Kids love mini ones and I have to say I do too.

Pasta & Meatballs

Forks & Amusement 2010

serves 4

3 tablespoons pine nuts

1 1/2 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, chopped; plus a little extra garnish

2 eggs

1/4 cup grated pecorino romano or parmesan cheese; plus a little extra for garnish and passing

salt and pepper

pinch of red pepper flakes (more if you like more heat)

1/4 cup Italian style bread crumbs

1 1/2 lbs. ground meat - beef, veal, pork - any combination or just one of them; turkey for a lighter take

1 - 26oz jar of your favorite pasta sauce

1 lb. box of your favorite dried pasta shape

Place a dry saute pan over high heat on the stove and add the pine nuts to it. Toast the pine nuts and shake the pan occasionally until they are slightly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool, then coarsely chop

Place water on the stove to boil for the pasta.

Combine in a large bowl the pine nuts, parsley, eggs, cheese, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and bread crumbs. Add the meat to the bowl and GENTLY combine the meat into the mixture, you can use a fork or your hands, but try to not overwork, otherwise you will end up with tough meatballs.

Using your hands, gently roll the mixture into golf ball sized meatballs and place on a platter or plate. You should have 10-12 meatballs. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add some olive oil to just coat. Place the meatballs in the pan and brown, turning them so that the entire meatball gets browned on each side, about 10 minutes.

Pour the sauce into the pan, roll the meatballs in the sauce and bring to a simmer. Allow to cook for 10 more minutes so meat balls are cooked through.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions, drain and add to the sauce and meatballs. Stir to combine everything. Turn off heat and serve with extra cheese and parsley to garnish.

Enjoy!

xoxo

Erin

Banh Mi Baby One More Time

This recipe is a revelation. Seriously, I would usually never consider a meatball sub for dinner and here I was enjoying every minute of devouring this amazing sandwich tonight. This is a French-Vietnamese style sandwich, usually served on the streets, made gourmet and fabulous. The flavors are out of this world and you can do a lot of the work in advance. I will absolutely make this again and would serve to any company. It can be made to your taste (as you can see I like when you can play with recipes) and it would even be delicious if you served it as a salad for those of you out there trying to avoid baguettes. If you are that person, I am not sure that we can be friends.

Pork Meatball Banh Mi

Bon Appetit January 2010

Makes 4 Sandwiches

Pickled Vegetables

2 cups coarsely grated carrots

2 cups coarsely grated peeled daikon (I could not find this in my market and subbed in zucchini)

1/4 cup unseasoned rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

Directions: Toss ingredients in medium bowl. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour, tossing occasionally

Hot Chili Mayo

2/3 cup Mayonnaise

2 green onions, finely chopped

1 tablespoon hot chili sauce (like sriracha, but any hot sauce you like will do)

Directions: Combine all three ingredients in a small and season with salt. *Do Ahead: Can be made one day in advance, cover and chill

Meatballs

1 lb ground pork

1/4 cup finely chopped basil

4 cloves of garlic, minced

3 green onions, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fish sauce (can find in the Asian food section of your market)

1 tablespoon hot chili sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Directions: Line rimmed baking sheet with plastic wrap. Gently mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. Using moistened hands and a scant tablespoons for each, roll meat mixture into 1 inch meatballs. Arrange on baking sheet. *Do ahead: Can be made 1 day in advance. Cover and chill

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Heat sesame oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the meatballs. Saute until brown and cooked through, turning meatballs often and lowering the heat if browning too quickly, about 15 minutes. (I took one out after they all felt firm and broke it open to make sure it was done) Transfer meatballs to another baking sheet and place in oven. Repeat with remaining meatballs.

Assembly

4 10-inch long individual baguettes, or 4 10-inch long sliced pieces of a long baguette

thinly sliced jalapeno chilis (I removed the seeds, because it would be crazy hot with them!)

16 large fresh cilantro sprigs

Directions: Cut each baguette or baguette piece horizontally, but not through the other side completely. Pull out enough bread from each bread half to leave 1/2 inch thick shell. Spread hot chili mayo all over the sandwich. Arrange jalapeno slices, then cilantro in bottom halves. Fill each with 1/4 of the meatballs. Drain pickled vegetables; place atop meatballs. Press on Baguette tops.

Enjoy!!!

xoxo

Erin

Bella Italian Wedding Soup

As the blizzard outside my window rages on, I continue to try to cook heart warming meals inside. This girl likes comfort in the cold and much of what I am cooking these days reflects that. This is one of my new favorite soup recipes from the Queen herself, Ina Garten. Many of you know her as the Barefoot Contessa. I use her recipes often and they always come out perfectly. This is another chicken soup made better by including flavorful meatballs and healthful spinach. The only thing I would do differently is make the meatballs smaller. Make sure that they are bite size when making them. Adjust cooking time as needed. I also added a few dashes of hot sauce to the meatball mixture. Hope this helps you stay warm!

Italian Wedding Soup

Barefoot Contessa 2008

serves 6-8

For the meatballs:

• 3/4 pound ground chicken
• 1/2 pound chicken sausage, casings removed
• 2/3 cup fresh white bread crumbs
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the soup:

• 2 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1 cup minced yellow onion
• 1 cup diced carrots (3 carrots), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 3/4 cup diced celery (2 stalks), cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 10 cups homemade chicken stock
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup small pasta such as tubetini or stars
• 1/4 cup minced fresh dill
• 12 ounces baby spinach, washed and trimmed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the meatballs, place the ground chicken, sausage, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, Pecorino, Parmesan, milk, egg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl and combine gently with a fork. With a teaspoon, drop 1 to 1 1/4-inch meatballs onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. (You should have about 40 meatballs. They don't have to be perfectly round.) Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.

In the meantime, for the soup, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and saute until softened, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Add the pasta to the simmering broth and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the pasta is tender. Add the fresh dill and then the meatballs to the soup and simmer for 1 minute. Taste for salt and pepper. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook for 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle each serving with extra grated Parmesan.

Enjoy!

xoxo

Erin