When it rains all day the only thing I want for dinner is a nice hot bowl of homemade soup. I love having a pot of soup cooking away all day on the stove if I don’t have anywhere to go. I love the comforting smell drifting throughout the house and welcoming everyone home after a long day of work and school. Sometimes my favorite cozy rainy days don’t go as planned though. Sometimes I have too much work scheduled on my calendar, doctors appointments and too many chores to do. So what’s a soup girl to do when she’s short on time? Easy answer…get out the Slow Cooker! This delicious and Easy Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup is just perfect on a busy, cool Fall evening!
I usually make my Italian Wedding Soup in a pot on the stove. I also usually make my own meatballs for this recipe. When I don’t have time, I take a few shortcuts to get that yummy meal on our dinner table without sacrificing any of the taste. This soup is full of flavor and can be prepared in only 10 minutes! Comfort Food made easy!
If you make and freeze your own meatballs, you can use them for this recipe. I didn’t have any left in my freezer, so I purchased my favorite store bought Italian variety. Saute a little onion, sliced carrots and minced garlic with olive oil in a skillet until softened and then add them to your Slow Cooker along with the frozen meatballs, chicken stock, water, fresh baby spinach and Parmesan rind. Give everything a good stir, and set your timer. When the cooking time is up, add you favorite small pasta (I like to use orzo or ditalini pasta), stir and let rest for 30 minutes.
In 8 hours, you’ll have a great soup ready for your family that tastes like it’s been simmering away on the stove top all day long. Serve your soup with a nice fresh salad and a loaf of crusty bread for a meal the whole family will love! Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 3 or 4 large carrots, sliced thin
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 28 oz. package frozen Italian style meatballs
- 5 oz. fresh baby spinach
- 32 oz. chicken stock
- 4 cups water
- 1 Parmesan rind if you have it
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked orzo pasta or other small pasta
- freshly grated Parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- Heat your olive oil in a skillet and saute the carrots, onions and garlic until softened and fragrant, 5-10 minutes. (You can even do this part the night before and store in a container in the refrigerator and just add it to the slow cooker in the morning)
- In a large slow cooker, add the frozen meatballs, your sauteed mixture, the baby spinach, chicken stock, water and Parmesan rind.
- Mix together well.
- Cook on low for 7 or 8 hours.
- Turn off the slow cooker and add your uncooked pasta, stir and let sit for 30 minutes.
- Serve immediately with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
- Serves 6-8.
- Enjoy!
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