Most soup recipes contain onion or garlic. However, most kids just don’t care for the sight, texture or sometimes flavor of either. What are parents to do besides cook two meals? Well, this gluten free meatball soup does not contain any onion or garlic. However, it does contain basil in the broth and parsley in the meatballs. If your little one is okay on seeing “green things” (my oldest daughter used to call them) in their food, then this recipe should be okay.
The meatballs are unique as they do not contain bread crumbs nor oatmeal. This reduces the carbohydrate content, allowing for more pasta. However, you can always omit the pasta and add additional meatballs for a lower carb option.
I hearty and flavorful vegetable gluten free meatball soup to keep you warm all winter long.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 lb. ground beef
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese (or Kraft shaker), plus more for garnish
- 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- Salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 2 stalks celery, sliced
- 1 yellow squash, sliced in half horizontally and then diagonally (or 1 - 2 cups packed spinach or Swiss chard)
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 4 cups (32 oz.) gluten free chicken broth (Swanson's carton, HerbOx cubes, Better Than Bouillon paste)
- 3 cups water
- 1 14 oz. canned gluten free whole tomatoes, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup gluten free pasta (shells, macaroni or penne) (use less for a thinner soup)
- Pepper, to taste
Instructions:
- Using your hands, combine in a bowl, the ground beef, Parmesan, parsley egg, salt and pepper. Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls and set aside.
- Preheat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add meatballs and brown on all sides. Remove meatballs from pot and set aside.
- In the same pot, saute the carrots and celery until tender, about 10 minutes.
- Add the broth, water, tomatoes, and basil and bring to a boil.
- Lower heat to simmer and add pasta* and meatballs. Cook until pasta reaches your desired tenderness or according to the instructions on the package, usually 9 to 16 minutes. To test cut the pasta with your fingernail. It is done when it breaks apart easily. If using spinach or Swiss chard, add either the last two minutes of cooking. Season to taste with pepper, and salt, if desired.
- Serve immediately in bowls and top with additional Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded.
Tips
*If you are using pasta that does not hold up well such as brown rice pasta, do not add it to the soup. Instead, add the cook pasta to each bowl and then add the soup. This way, when you store leftovers, the pasta will be stored separately as well and will not get mushy.