Mom’s Italian Wedding Soup

Few things in life are more comforting than a steaming bowl of soup. Our mom’s legendary soups were the ones that waited for us after a frosty walk home from school; warmed us to our core after neighborhood snow angel contests; soothed our souls after the big breakups and graced our family table for holiday celebrations.

Italian ‘wedding soup’ is a popular soup here in America but it might surprise you to know that its origins have zippo to do with weddings. Its original name, minestra maritata, translates to ‘married soup’, a reference to the fact that you are marrying the greens to the stock. This soup has deep roots in Naples, from where our paternal grandmother was born.

I suspect our mother learned how to make this soup from her mother-in-law and over the years, made it her own. (For which I can almost bet our grandmother was not pleased. 🙂 ) Her version was a simple one – homemade broth with little meatballs, greens and eggs. She typically would use whatever greens were available, usually escarole or at times, spinach.

With the summer warmth now fading to cooler temps, I am finding my way back into the kitchen to bring comfort to my restless soul, which like so many of you, is ready to break free of this pandemic. A bit of quiet kitchen time during this storm of uncertainty is as therapeutic for me as my morning meditation.

May it give you the same comfort. Grab that stockpot, turn on some tunes that may soothe your soul, and savor the process of turning the simplest of ingredients into a deeply satisfying meal.

Stay safe,
Baci a tutti,
Michele