Italian Orzo Soup with Sausage Meatballs, Spinach and Tomatoes

I am pretending it’s not 90 degrees out and making soup this week. Guys, I don’t consider myself a very envious person, but this is the time of year where I start to experience major Fall Envy. I’ve lived in Florida most of my life (I was 10 years old when I moved here from NY) so our fall season is not new or shocking to me in any way. I’m pretty used to it whether I like it or not. But over the years, since social media hit the scene, fall in other parts of the country – REAL FALL – is a little more in your (my) face I guess you can say. It’s mid-September and I can’t tell you how many pictures I’ve seen already of apple picking, long sleeves, the start of leaves changing and yes…boots. My legs start to instantly sweat when I even think about wearing boots.

(Apples, Pumpkins and Palm Trees … Fall in Florida)

Like I said. It’s 90 degrees and I have Fall Envy. (has fall even officially started yet???)

I’m half kidding about making soup in hot weather because I actually like soup all year round. Soup in the summer is actually a nice way to enjoy all those colorful veggies that are bursting everywhere you look. Two of my favorite soups to make in the summer months are this Summer Vegetable Soup with Pesto and Summer Chicken Chili Verde. Soup is good food anytime of year if you ask me.

A few weeks ago my sister in law Jamie sent me a pin of this Italian Orzo Soup my friend Ali cooked up. The beautiful image of this soup stuck in my mind and I finally got around to making it this week. I needed a make ahead dinner for one of our nights and soup always fits the bill for evenings where we all may be eating at different times because of our schedules. What made it even better is that I already had all of the ingredients on hand in my pantry, fridge and freezer. (I love it when that happens.)

Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Italian Orzo Soup with Sausage Meatballs, Spinach and Tomatoes

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 2 cups water (I add some of this water to cans of tomatoes with water to get extra flavor)
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 cup whole wheat orzo
• 1 lb fresh Italian chicken or turkey sausage, out of casings and rolled into small meatballs (see tip below)
• 2 handfuls fresh spinach or baby kale (I used a fresh spinach and baby kale blend)

Directions:

1. In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat and add onions, garlic and celery. Saute for 2-3 minutes until all starts to soften and become fragrant.
2. Add tomatoes, chicken stock, water, oregano, parsley, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Add orzo and sausage meatballs.
3. Bring to another boil then let simmer on low heat for 12 minutes. Stir in fresh spinach and/or baby kale and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust.
4. Serve with fresh Parmesan cheese.

Tip:  Buy fresh Italian sausage links (chicken, turkey or pork) and use it to make easy meatballs for soup like this. Squeeze about an inch or so of the fresh ground sausage meat out of the casing and roll into a small meatball. Continue to do this will all of the sausage links. Easy meatballs!

More soup for you!

My 5 Favorite Healthy Soups

Creamy Broccoli Soup

Healthy Chicken Tortilla Soup

5 Ingredient Pesto Chicken Soup

Lightened Greek Egg Lemon Soup

Follow Aggie’s Kitchen’s board Soup, Stew and Chili Recipes on Pinterest.