Making delicious wedding soup in your slow cooker or crockpot is perfect for cold days or any day that you need that beautiful boost of wedding soup. Make your own delicious meatballs for this soup or use your favorite frozen meatballs!
How to make the best Italian Wedding Soup in your crockpot with meatballs and chicken.
Crockpot Wedding Soup – Delicious Italian Style with Meatballs and little Chunks of Chicken
This delicious Italian crockpot wedding soup cooks up perfectly right in your slow cooker. Top this soup with a little Parmesan cheese and you have a delicious lunch or dinner of homemade soup!
Here are two great recipes to keep in mind the next time you get one of those massive cravings for fresh Italian wedding soup!
The first recipe takes a bit of time but churns out an excellent soup with plenty of leftovers. The second wedding soup recipe is quick and does not have all the added chicken, but just perfect for a meal of soup and sandwiches.
The first crockpot Italian wedding soup recipe has both chicken AND meatballs!
I am known for my wedding soup and take pride in creating the perfect marriage. The meatballs are the perfect bride and groom making the shredded chicken the perfect bridesmaid. This is an easy slow cooker recipe that you will love!
Double the Amount of Chicken –
Since I take the time to cook fresh chicken breast, I normally double the amount and use the leftovers in another soup recipe. The chicken should complement the soup but leave the marriage bliss to the meatballs.
Only use 1-1/2 cups of the fresh shredded chicken and freeze the rest to use later in the week to save time on a weeknight meal.
It takes a little bit of time to make homemade Italian wedding soup with both meatballs and chicken – but it’s so well worth the effort! It’s making two meals in one and lots of leftover soup!
You can use frozen meatballs instead of making homemade meatballs. There are about 25-30 small meatballs in 1 lb. of ground beef.
Fall in love with this delicious wedding soup made with tender chicken and meatballs
- 2-1/2 - 3 lbs. whole chicken breast (with bone and skin)
- 1 medium onion, chopped fine
- 3-4 medium carrots, chopped fine (about 1 cup)
- 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
- 1 (32 oz.) carton chicken broth
- 4 cups water
- 2 teaspoons chicken soup base
- 3 cups chopped fresh spinach, chopped fine
- 1/2 cup Acini Di Pepe
- *About 3 cups of additional chicken broth
- 25 small frozen meatballs
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 tablespoon dried parsley
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Chop the onions and carrots very fine using a mini food processor. (Save about 1/2 of a carrot and dice into small pieces so you have some bigger pieces as well.)
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Place the onions, garlic and carrots in the bottom of the crock pot. Lightly salt and pepper the chicken pieces and lay them on top of the onions. Add the chicken broth and water. Cook on high for 3 hours.
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Start the meatballs while the chicken is cooking. Mix all of the meatball ingredients in a medium bowl. Fill a rounded teaspoon with the meat mixture and level it off. Roll the meat in your hands and get them as round as possible. Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray and lay the meatballs on the cookie sheet in a row. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
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After 3-4 hours, carefully remove the chicken from the crockpot and shred after it has cooled.
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Add 1-1/2 cups of shredded chicken, the meatballs, and the spinach to the crockpot. Cook on high for 1 hour. Add a couple of teaspoons of chicken soup base and taste to see if you need any more.
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Add the pasta to the crock pot and cook until the pasta is tender.
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Serve soup with freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Wedding Soup Tips –
*After the pasta has absorbed a lot of the chicken broth, you may need to add more broth. Keep some extra chicken broth handy and add more as needed.
* Acini Di Pepe is a tiny bead-shaped pasta that is traditionally used in wedding soup.
* Serve the soup with fresh shredded Parmesan cheese.
Quick Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
Here is another recipe when you just want to make a quick Wedding Soup with no fuss. This recipe doesn’t have the chicken, but it’s delicious as well and very easy to prepare.
Depending on how much time you have to prepare this wedding soup should be your choice of both soups. The one below is pretty quick and easy and the soup with chicken takes just a bit longer. Both are yummy delicious.
How to Make – QUICK CROCKPOT WEDDING SOUP (no chicken)
Ingredients:
For the Meatballs:
1 pound ground beef
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Soup Ingredients:
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
2 carrots, chopped small (about 1 cup)
8 cups chicken broth
3 cups chopped fresh spinach
1/2 cup uncooked acini de pepe pasta
How to Make the Quick Wedding Soup
Mix all of the meatball ingredients together and form into small meatballs using a teaspoon or half tablespoon for measure. Combine all of the soup ingredients in the crock pot with the exception of the uncooked pasta. Place the meatballs into the crock pot and cook on high for 6 hours or low for 7 or 8. Add pasta about an 1/2 hour to hour before soup is finished cooking.
- These are two of the best ways to make crockpot wedding soup and both are super-delicious!
- One of the best things about making your own homemade soups is it saves a ton of money. Store-bought soups can be expensive to purchase by the container. Canned soups are cheaper but are not nearly as nutritious as with homemade, you control the amount of veggies and also the amount of sodium.
What to Serve with Crockpot Wedding Soup?
- For kids we like to serve buttered toast or crackers.
- Make a complete meal and serve a healthy tossed salad.
- Fruit salad is a great choice.
- Warm rolls with butter.
Can Frozen Meatballs be Used for this Wedding Soup Recipe?
Yes, frozen meatballs are awesome to use when you don’t have time to make homemade meatballs for most soup recipes. Find your favorite brand and just thaw them before adding them to your soup. If the meatballs are extra large just cut them in half.
Does Italian Wedding Soup Keep Well for Leftovers?
Yes, this soup only gets better as it ages. As with all noodle soups, make sure to have extra broth on hand.
This soup can be stored in your refrigerator in an airtight container for about 4-5 days.
Love Homemade Soups? Try a few of these:
Chicken and Rice Soup
Grandmas Potato Soup
Chicken Pastina Soup
