Happy fall everyone! This time of year calls for a delicious soup recipe! This recipe was my all-time favorite when I was a kid. I loved going to Oma’s house because I knew she would have this soup ready for me! It is a very hearty soup and is very filling, especially if you serve it with a fresh italian bread!
In this recipe I do not include the directions on how to prepare my meatballs. When I make my homeade sauce for spaghetti, I also make a giant batch of meatballs. I use half for the pasta and freeze the other half. So for this recipe, all I had to do was defrost them. I may do a future post on my favorite meatball recipe (stay tuned).
When you make your meatballs for this soup, I would recommend making mini-meatballs instead of large ones, like I have shown in my picture. It is really based on your preference but I think if you make them smaller, the chances of getting one in every spoonful is promising 😉
Ingredients:
-pre-preared meatballs
-a bundle of 3 to 4 leaks
-3 stalks of celery
-1 large (or 2 small) white onions
-1/2 cup barley
-1 24 oz can of Hunts Italian Sausage Pasta Sauce
-1 26 oz Colonna Meat flavored Pasta Sauce
-handful of black peppercorns
-2 cups of chicken broth
-3 cups of water
-salt and pepper
–optional: Italian bread to serve on the side
Directions:
1. Cut up your onion, leak and celery. You can chop your veggies as fine as you like. I always like my soups a little bit chunkier.
2. In a large pot, heat a little bit of olive oil over medium-high heat. Fry your onions until they are slightly browned.
3. Add in your celery, chicken broth and water. Mix to combine. Add salt and pepper for taste.
4. Take out a handful of whole peppercorn to add to your soup for taste. I used around 10 in my soup. Remember: when you go to eat the soup, do not eat the peppercorn– they are just for flavor. *My Oma used to play a game with us and whoever got a peppercorn in their soup got 25 cents per pepper that we found!
5. Add in the pasta sauces and meatballs. Stir to combine all ingredients. Add barley here (no need to cook them before, they will cook with the soup).
6. Cook on low heat for 45 minutes or until barley is soft and cooked throughout. ENJOY!
I hope you enjoy this soup as much as I do!
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