Albondigas Soup

We are still having soup weather around here as we just got a couple more inches of snow last night.  Winter is not over.  We feel fortunate our weather is not as bad as some parts of the country but we are still getting antsy for spring to arrive.  But not quite yet, I'm afraid. 

I made this soup a couple of weeks ago and put some in the freezer to save for a day like today when we just feel like staying home all hunkered down waiting for the snow to melt.  It's no fun trying to drive around here with all our hills.  This soup warms you up real fast because it's a Mexican soup with just right amount of spices.  After I made it, I gave some to a couple of friends and I got the seal of approval.  It's a recipe from a local chef named Charlie Midencey who works at Ovelake Golf and Country Club and this is his grandmother's recipe.  He was featured in the Sunday paper and I thought the recipe looked pretty good.  I always like making peoples' family recipes; they are usually the best recipes.  I'd never heard of albondigas soup but my friend had and she raved about it so that's why I decided to make it and I'm glad I did.  The article said when he was growing up in L.A., everyone had heard of pozole, but albondigas soup was rare.  The soup has a rich, spicy broth and is very hardy with thick-cut zucchini, carrots, potatoes and meatballs mixed with rice, chipotle and serrano peppers.  I could tell it was a family recipe because it was written a little vague.  I plan to add a few of my own notes in this recipe to clarify parts of it.  Also, I thought there were too many meatballs and not enough broth.  The meatball absorbed all the broth so next time I plan to make half as many meatballs.  The broth is REALLY good.  It was a shame that so much of it got absorbed and you couldn't savor it as much as I would have liked.  I know they wanted it to be a hardy soup with all those meatballs (46 total meatballs) but I'm pretty sure it would still be spectacular with half that many leaving more room to enjoy the broth.  

Meatballs (makes 46 meatballs) 

I would recommend to make half the recipe of meatballs or make the full recipe and then use only half the meatballs and freeze the rest

1 bunch cilantro 
2 white onions
1 cup white rice
1 Tbsp. dice chipotle pepper (or you can use 1 Tbsp. of ground chipotle chile pepper spice)
2 Tbsp. cumin
2 Tbsp. chicken bouillon
1 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. black pepper
3 pounds ground beef

Soup

2 zucchini, cut into medium, bite-size pieces

2 large carrots, cut into medium bite-size pieces

3 russet potatoes, cut into medium, bite-size pieces

1 can corn

Broth

2 Roma tomatoes, quartered
2 serrano peppers, halved and deseeded
1 quart chicken broth
1 quart water
6 cloves garlic, whole

1 Tbsp. chicken bouillon
1 cup tomato sauce

Make the Meatballs. 

1.  Roughly, chop the cilantro leaves and dice the onions, placing into a large bowl.  

2.  Add the uncooked rice, chipotle, cumin, 2 Tbsp. chicken bouillon, 1 Tbsp. each of salt & pepper, and ground beef.  

3.  Mix until well combined and roll into golf-ball-size meatballs.  Set aside.

Make the Broth

4.  In a large pot over medium-high heat, pour in chicken broth and 1 quart of water.  Add in tomatoes, serranos, garlic, 1 Tbsp. chicken bouillon and tomato sauce.  



5.  Mix and bring to a boil, boiling for 5 minutes or until tomatoes and serranos are soft. 

6.  Remove from heat and blend soup using a stick blender or conventional blender.  

7.  Bring mixture back to a boil and add in meatballs.  

8.  After  meatballs are added, lower heat to a simmer and add carrots.  

9.  Once carrots are fork-tender, add potatoes.  Once the potatoes are fork-tender, add zucchini and corn.

10.  Cover with a lid and turn off heat.  Let rest for 15 minutes or until zucchini reaches desired tenderness and serve. 

Goes well with Winter Jeweled Fruit Salad and tortilla chips.