Minestra/Italian wedding soup

In a large stock pot, bring to a good simmer:

6-8 quarts chicken stock (homemade is best, but I often use those mega-cans of chicken stock purchased from GFS)

4 large carrots, peeled & chopped

1 c. diced celery

1 large head of escarole, cleaned and chopped (approx. 6 cups or so)

few cloves of smashed/minced garlic

S&P to taste

Simmer for 30-45 minutes, until the escarole is tender.

Make the meatballs while the stock is simmering:

For meatballs:

1-1/2 lb. ground veal (OR use a 50-50% mix of LEAN ground beef & ground pork)

3 large eggs

1 cup plain breadcrumbs

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

2 Tblsp. chopped parsley (fresh or dried)

Form into small balls, an inch or less in diameter. Place them on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake in a 375 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Remove the meatballs from the pan and carefully place them into the stockpot.

Simmer for another half hour.

If you like, add 4 cups of COOKED small pasta (any shape - or broken up linguine) If you prefer to put the uncooked pasta right in with the soup to finish cooking, make sure you add an additional 2 cups of chicken stock to replenish the loss of liquid.

Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano puts the icing on the cake... or the cheese on the soup!