serves
6-8
prep
25 minutes
cook
35 minutes
difficulty
Easy
serves
6-8
people
preparation
25
minutes
cooking
35
minutes
difficulty
Easy
level
Ingredients
Meatballs
- Olive oil
- 1 slice sandwich bread
- ¼ cup (60 ml) milk
- 1 egg
- ¼ red onion, finely minced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 500 g ground turkey
- ¾ cup (60 g) finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 1 ½ tbsp finely chopped parsley
- 2 tsp finely chopped oregano
- ¼-½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Soup
- 3 tsp (15 ml) olive oil
- ¾ red onion, sliced into thin wedges
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- ½ fennel bulb, diced
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- ¼-½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 2½ litres low sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup (100 g) short soup pasta, such as acini de pepe, orzo, or alphabet pasta
- 4 large handfuls dark leafy greens, roughly chopped
- ½ cup (40 g) finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- ¼ cup parsley, chopped
- ½ lemon, juice
Instructions
- For the meatballs, heat oven to 200°C (400°F) and lightly coat a tray (sheet pan) sheet pan with oil.
- Tear the bread into small pieces and add into a large bowl along with the milk. Stir to combine and set aside for 5 to 10 minutes to allow the bread to soak up the milk and break down slightly.
- Add in the egg, onion and garlic and beat to combine. Add in the turkey, Parmigiano-Reggiano, parsley, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Using two forks or your fingers almost like rakes, mix just until well combined. Scoop scant-tablespoon-sized mounds of the mixture onto the sheet pan then roll into small meatballs. You want them to be smaller than a ping pong ball. If the mixture is a bit sticky, simply dampen your hands with water every so often – this will keep the mixture from sticking to your hands.
- Roast the meatballs for 14 to 16 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom and cooked through.
- Meanwhile, prepare the soup. Place a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and add in about a 3 teaspoons of oil. Add the onion, carrots and fennel and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until softened and lightly caramelised. Add in the beans, garlic and red pepper flakes and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes or until the beans start to pick up a little colour and their skins begin to burst.
- Turn the heat up to medium-high. Carefully pour in the broth, add the meatballs, and bring to a boil. If you have a rind of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese hanging around, you can add it now too. It will give the soup some extra flavour. When the soup comes to a boil, add in the pasta and cook for 10 minutes until the vegetables and pasta are tender.
- In the last few minutes of cooking, stir in the greens to wilt. Just before serving, stir through the Parmigiano-Reggiano, parsley and lemon juice. Serve with big shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano on top.
Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
