This Quick Italian Wedding Soup Recipe is filled with plump sausage meatballs, spinach and tender pasta in a fragrant and delicious broth.
We love to pair this soup with my Garlic Breadsticks and a garden salad for a complete meal.
If you’re looking for a quick and delicious soup recipe to warm you up, this Italian Wedding Soup recipe is just what you need!
What Is Italian Wedding Soup?
Italian Wedding Soup is a staple in most Italian restaurants. The name comes from the idea of a “marriage” between the greens and the meat in the soup.
The signature points of this soup are the tiny, bite-size meatballs, plenty of spinach and the Acini de Pepe pasta.
Italian Wedding Soup Ingredients
Here’s the basic list of ingredients that you’ll need in order to make this quick-cooking soup. As always, you can find the full list of ingredients in the recipe card below.
- Onion
- Carrot
- Celery
- Garlic
- Chicken Broth – Low sodium
- Mild Italian Sausage Links – casings removed
- Baby Spinach
- Acini di Pepe Pasta – or Orzo pasta will work too
- Parsley
- Oregano
How To Make Italian Wedding Soup – FAST!
This recipe for Italian Wedding Soup comes together so quick, you’ll be wanting to make it all winter long!
SAUTÉ Start by sautéing your onion, carrots and celery (also called a mirepoix) in a little bit of olive oil, until the veggies are nice and tender. Stir in the garlic and cook until nice and fragrant.
ADD BROTH AND MEATBALLS Remove the casings from the sausage links and shape the meat into tiny, bite-size meatballs. Pour the broth into the veggies and bring it to a boil. Add in the meatballs and cook for 4 minutes.
ADD IN PASTA Once the meatballs have cooked for about 4 minutes, add in the pasta and let it cook for about 10 to 12 minutes, until the pasta is nice and tender.
STIR IN SPINACH AND HERBS Finally, stir in the spinach and fresh herbs, until they are wilted throughout the soup.
I love the little bits of tender pasta throughout this soup. The mild sausage gives each bite a nice kick of flavor, while the spinach keeps it nice and hearty.
What Pasta Goes In Italian Wedding Soup?
We’re using Acini di Pepe, which is in the shape of a very small rolled ball. You could also use an Orzo pasta (same quantity).
PRO TIP: Anything larger than these two pasta shapes and I would reduce the amount of pasta.
Can I Make It Ahead?
Yes! This soup is great for making ahead. I think the flavors get better by the second day.
If you want to make this Italian Wedding Soup ahead of time, you can cook it up to 48 hours in advance. Store in an airtight container in the fridge and reheat over the stove top.
Can I Freeze Italian Wedding Soup?
YES! I love making an extra large batch of this soup and freezing leftovers for a rainy day. Just make sure you chill the soup before placing it in the freezer.
I like to pour the soup in large zip-top bags and lay them flat in the freezer until frozen. Then they stack nicely and defrost quickly.
This soup can be frozen for up to 5 months!
More QUICK Comforting Soup Recipes
We’re big fans of soup over here, so you know I have plenty of delicious recipes for you to try! Here are some more of our favorite soup recipes…
- Loaded Baked Potato Soup
- Taco Soup Recipe
- Quick Vegetable Ground Beef Soup
- Low Carb Zuppa Toscano
- Cabbage Soup Recipe
I can’t wait for you to give this Quick Italian Wedding Soup Recipe a try! I know you’re going to love it!
Quick Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup carrot, chopped
- ½ medium onion, chopped
- ½ cup celery, chopped
- 1 tsp garlic, minced
- 4 cups chicken broth, low sodium
- 3 mild Italian sausage links, casings removed
- ½ cup Acini di Pepe Pasta, or Orzo Pasta
- 3 cups baby spinach
- 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
- 1 tbsp oregano, freshly chopped, or 1 tsp dried
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot and sauté carrots, onion and celery until tender, about 5 minutes. Add in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 more minute. Meanwhile, remove casings from sausage links and roll the meat into 1/2" balls.
- Stir in chicken broth and bring mixture to a boil. Add sausage balls to the soup and cook for 4 minutes. Then stir in pasta and cook for an additional 10 minutes, or until pasta is tender.
- Add in spinach, parsley and oregano and cook until spinach wilts into soup. Season with salt and pepper and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
Lita
I love this soup! I timed myself to see how quick it would take to make – I made small meatballs with Italian sweet sausage, Progresso seasoned bread crumbs and egg, baked for 10 mins on 350, I preheated the oven. Chopped the carrots, celery, spinach and onions. It was ready in less than an hour! The family loved it! Thanks Shawn!
Mari
Thank you Shawn for such a quick and delicious recipe!! I did bake the little sausage balls for 15 mins. @ 325 mainly to get rid of the grease. This will now be my “Go To” soup recipe 😉
Lewis Moore
I take the sausage and semi freeze it. Then cut it into 1/4 in slices, pop the skin off, and use slices instead of in a ball form. For those of us with dexterity issues, it works for me. Tastes the same.
Jill
Is this enough time to cook the sausage?
Camille Tavolacci
Unbelievable
Fast, easy and delicious
Thank you so much
Camille
Scarsdale. NY
Bonnie Keeney
Is this about a pound of Italian mild sausage and can I use already ground sausage instead of the links?
Chelsea
Looks amazing and I can’t wait to try! Can this be made vegetarian with veggie stock and Impossible Mild Italian sausage?
Tammy
This truly was fast and every bit as good as the more labor intensive recipes I have!
The whole family loved it! Thank you.
Shawn
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Tammy!
Jacci Heintz
Do you think if I used chicken Italian sausage ,it would change the flavor of the soup too much? Also how many servings is this? Thank you
Shawn
Chicken Italian Sausage should be just great. It’s about 6 servings.