Tips and Tidbits-Turkey Meatball Soup

Recipe of the Week: original post on 12-22-2009

Turkey Meatball Soup

A great, feel-good recipe for a warm, tasty, and HEALTHY soup!

2 cups chicken stock
1 pound ground turkey
1 stalk celery; cleaned and diced (can substitute with small head of broccoli diced well)
8-10 spears fresh asparagus, cleaned and cut into 1 inch pieces
3-4 strips of bacon, diced
1 can white beans
1 small onion; diced
1 clove garlic; smashed and diced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 egg
couple handfuls of Italian bread crumbs (can substitute with all purpose flour)
2 tsp zesty season salt
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp poultry seasoning
salt/pepper to taste

Heat stock pot over med. heat. Brown the bacon in olive oil until edges are just cooked and set aside to cool. Prepare the rest of the ingredients. In large bowl, combine turkey, bacon, bread crumbs, onion, celery, egg, garlic, poultry seasoning, Italian seasoning, zesty season salt, and salt/pepper. Work with you hands to roll into 1 inch meatballs; add more bread crumbs if needed. Tip: Spray your hands with cooking oil spray to minimize stickiness! Brown meatballs in pot with olive oil until edges are browned and hold their shape. Take out of pot to rest. Add stock and bring to boil. Once stock is at a rolling boil, drop in meatballs to finish out. Add can of beans and asparagus and reduce heat. Simmer for 30-45 minutes. For crisp asparagus, add after 35-40 minutes and cook until spears are bright green. Serve with a crunchy baguette.
Happy Cooking!