Chicken Rice Soup with Greek Meatballs

 For being such a soup crazy that I am, I have not posted a soup in a while! I do not really get the name of this recipe as there is no chicken in it. It is made with chicken broth though, so I suppose. Nevertheless, it was a good soup. The Greek meatballs were really good. The original recipe called to soak white bread in milk and then use that for the bread crumbs, but I forgot to put white bread on the grocery list so I subbed panko and milk together and the meatballs came out super moist. I really enjoyed the spinach and feta cheese in them as well. A good tip for meatballs is to use a cookie dough scoop to make them, then they are all the same size. I think I learned that from Ina Garten. The only thing that was not my favorite in this recipe was the rosemary. Rosemary is not my favorite herb because I think it tastes like a tree. I use it sparingly, like in meat dishes. In soup I found it a little weird. I also used some vegetable broth combined with chicken broth for the base of the soup. I really like the combination as the vegetable broth has a really rich flavor. This is a nice twist on a classic soup recipe.

Chicken Rice Soup with Greek Meatballs
Adapted from Rachael Ray

Rice Pilaf:

2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup orzo pasta
1 cup white long grain rice
2 cups chicken broth

For the Soup:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 celery stick, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
Salt
Pepper

For the Meatballs:

1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup milk
1 pound ground turkey
1 egg
Salt
Pepper
1 box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Prepare a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl combine all meatball ingredients and mix well. Roll into 1 inch balls and arrange on cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven or soup pot over medium high heat. Add carrots, celery, garlic, and herbs. Cook partially covered for 5 minutes. Add broth and water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer.

Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan, heat butter over medium high heat. Add orzo and toast t deep golden brown. Stir in rice and stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 18 minutes.

Add meatballs to soup.

Add orzo to soup when serving.

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This recipe is linked on:  Wednesday Extravaganza, What's Cooking Wednesday, Cast Party Wednesday, Whimsy Wednesday,  Link it Up Thursday, Thriving on Thursdays, Tasty Thursdays