Escarole Soup
(Italian Wedding Soup)
This is an adaptation of my mother’s recipe. She never really measured things too much, so the measurements are ad lib. This recipe can be broken up into several stages, namely chicken stock, meatballs, and soup assembly, and can be done over successive days if need be. This makes it pretty easy to make for a holiday since most of the work can be done ahead of time.
Ingredients:
1 (or more) chicken or turkey carcass(es).
Salt to taste
1 ¼ to 1 ½ lb ground meatloaf mix (typically turkey, veal, and beef, but any ground meats will do)
7 eggs (2 for meatballs, 5 for egg drop mixture)
½ cup seasoned bread crumbs
¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
Salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp oregano
1 cup of grated Locatelli cheese
1 large (or 2 small) head(s) of escarole, washed and cut into 1” x 2” strips
3 scallions, cut into ¼” pieces
Chicken Stock
Boil fresh or frozen poultry carcass in about 6 quarts of water and a liberal amount of salt (should taste neither bland nor salty when the stock is complete.) It is best to let it boil hard until the meat has fallen completely off the bone (2 to 3 hours). You may have to add water several times during the process. Final volume should be about 4 quarts. Strain out all bones and meat. Remove excess fat by either siphoning the soup from the bottom or skimming the fat from the top after overnight refrigeration. Store the stock in refrigerator for up to 2 days or in freezer for long term. Otherwise, continue with soup assembly.
Meatballs
Mix the ground meat, bread crumbs, two eggs, salt and pepper, parsley, oregano well by hand or in a mixer until well combined. Pre-heat oven to 375º. Roll the mixture into balls that are about the size of a cherry tomato (3/4” diameter or so) and place on a cookie sheet. Cook the meatballs in the oven for about 12 minutes (or until they begin to brown). Remove from the oven, turn each meatball over, and return to the oven until brown all over. Store the meatballs in a plastic container in the refrigerator for up to two days, or continue to soup assembly.
Soup Assembly
Drop the meatballs into the soup stock. Bring the soup to a boil. Beat five eggs in a bowl or measuring cup until they are uniformly mixed. Add the grated Locatelli and mix well. With the soup at a hard boil, slowly drizzle in the egg and cheese mixture. (If you add it all at once you will have scrambled eggs. If you add it slowly you’ll get a nice light egg drop). Return the soup to a boil for about 20 minutes, stirring to break up floating egg drop until it distributes itself throughout. Make any final salt and pepper adjustments that might be necessary. Add the escarole a large handful at a time, stirring the soup while you do, and cook no longer than three minutes after it has all been added. Immediately ladle out into bowls, garnish with the green onions, and serve. (Don’t allow the escarole to change from bright green to pale green by overcooking it. The escarole will cook in the bowls just enough).