For the meatballs:
- 3/4 lb ground chicken
- 1/2 lb chicken sausage, casings removed
- 2/3 cup fresh white bread crumbs
- 2 tsp garlic (2 cloves), minced
- 3 tbsp fresh parsley leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, fresh grated
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, fresh grated
- 3 tbsp milk
- 1 extra large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
For the soup:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup yellow onion, minced
- 1 cup carrots, diced and cut into 1/4" pieces
- 3/4 cup celery, diced and cut into 1/4" pieces
- 10 cups chicken stock
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup tubettini pasta
- 1/4 cup fresh dill, minced
- 12 oz. baby spinach, washed and trimmed
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. For the meatballs, place the ground chicken, sausage, bread, garlic, parsley, Pecorino, Parmesan, milk, egg, salt and pepper in a bowl and combine gently with a fork. With a teaspoon, drop 1" meatballs onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. You should have about 40 meatballs, and they don't have to be perfectly round. Bake for 30 minutes until they are cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.
- In the meantime, for the soup, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat and in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the onions, carrots and celery and sauté until softened, 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Ad the pasta to the simmering broth and cook 6-8 minutes, until the pasta is tender. Add the fresh dill and then the meatballs to the soup and simmer 1 minute. Taste for salt and pepper. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle each serving with extra grated parmesan, if you wish.
