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Old Nonnie's Classic Minestrone with Croutons

Cheese Cubes aka Croutons
Print Recipe
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine Italian

Ingredients
  

Chicken and stock

  • 1 whole chicken 4-6 lb.
  • 2 cloves garlic peeled, left whole and smashed
  • 1 ½ cup onion chopped, about 1 medium
  • 1 ¼ cup carrot chopped, about 3 med
  • 2 cups celery – stalk and leaves chopped, about 3-4 center stalks
  • 1 tsp whole peppercorns
  • 2 Tbs kosher salt
  • Cold water to cover

Meatballs

  • 1 lb ground beef we use 90/10 lean to fat ratio
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp freshly ground pepper or more to taste
  • 1 clove garlic finely minced
  • ¼ cup milk we use skim
  • 3 tbs grated Romano cheese I use Locatelli
  • ¾ cup fresh ground breadcrumbs store-bought dry will work
  • 1 tbs fresh Italian parsley chopped
  • 2 15 oz cans cannellini beans thoroughly rinsed and drained
  • 1 ½ cups dried ditalini or other small pasta
  • 1 head Escarole rinsed and chopped to bite-size

Croutons (aka crispy cheese cubes)

  • 4 large eggs beaten
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley chopped
  • 1 ½ cup Romano cheese finely grated
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • Romano cheese grated, for finishing the soup
  • Olive oil to drizzle over individual servings

Instructions
 

  • Romano cheese, grated, for finishing the soup
  • Olive oil to drizzle over individual servings

For the chicken and stock:

  • Put the chicken and next six ingredients into a large soup- or stockpot with enough cold water just to cover. Put over high heat until it begins a gentle simmer and then reduce the heat to medium or medium-low to maintain that gentle simmer for 1 hour 15 minutes. Remove and cool the chicken carcass. Discard the vegetables. Strain the stock through a fine sieve back into the stock pot. This is easiest to do by straining from the original stockpot into another (or very large heat-resistant bowl and then back into the stockpot).
  • Pick the chicken meat from the carcass. Cut any pieces that are large into bite-sized chunks but do not mince. Put the chicken back into the stock. At this point, it is not on the heat yet.

For the meatballs:

  • While the chicken is poaching, prepare the meatballs.
  • Preheat the oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with foil and a light coating of olive oil.
  • Put all of the ingredients for the meatballs except the ground beef into a bowl and blend well to incorporate. Once the ingredients are well combined, use your hands to gently mix the ground beef into the other ingredients.
  • Scoop the meat by rounded teaspoon and roll into balls, placing on the baking sheet side-by-side but not touching. They should be bite-sized, about the size of a grape. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until just slightly browned. Once they have finished baking, drop into the pot with the stock and chicken still off the heat.

For the cheese cubes:

  • While the meatballs are in the oven, prepare the cheese cubes. If the oven isn't already on for the meatballs, preheat it to 325.
  • Grease or line with parchment a small baking sheet (I use a quarter sheet pan) with sides or a 9x13 Pyrex casserole dish.
  • Mix the eggs, baking powder, parsley and black pepper in a medium bowl. Add the cheese, stirring well to combine. Add flour and mix well. It should be the consistency of a thick batter (think brownie batter, not cookie dough). If it's too thin, add more flour 1 teaspoon at a time.
  • Reduce the oven temperature to 325 (if it was at 375 for the meatballs). Bake until the batter has set and the top becomes a light golden brown color, about 30 minutes.
  • Turn out of the dish immediately and let cool 10 minutes on a cooling rack. Immediately cut into small cubes, the size of generous croutons. These can be used right away or stored in an airtight container.

To finish the soup:

  • Return the stock with the chicken and meatballs to a gentle simmer on medium to medium low heat.
  • Once the soup gets to a simmer, add the cannellini beans and dried pasta and stir. Let simmer together for fifteen minutes. Just before serving, add the escarole and stir.

To serve:

  • Ladle the soup into individual bowls. You can either top with a generous sprinkle of pecorino romano and a light drizzle of olive oil or have those ready at the table with the cheese cubes, a few of which should be set on top of the soup just before serving.

Some Hints:

  • This soup is terrific to make early in the day or the day before. Just leave out the pasta and escarole until you reheat the soup for serving, adding the pasta once it comes to a simmer and allow to cook for 15 minutes and then the escarole just before serving.
  • This soup is perfect as a make-ahead meal for the freezer. Simply prepare each component and freeze separately. When you plan to serve, defrost the stock overnight. Bring to a simmer and add the chicken, meatballs, and beans all at once. The pasta can be added once the soup comes to as simmer. As above, the escarole should be added just before serving.
  • This soup can be made with Parmigiano-Reggiano but that could be quite pricey. Do not use the fake stuff in a can. Ever. For any reason. Please buy block cheese and grate yourself unless you’ve got a deli that you trust to not add fillers. Fillers can throw off the texture of what you are cooking.
  • The soup is a terrific second day soup and freezes very well but know that the pasta will become slightly mushy; a guilty pleasure for me.

Notes

  • If the fat content of the chicken stock concerns you, after you have removed the carcass and vegetables and strained the stock, cool it completely and skim any solidified fat from the top. Continue on with the recipe.
  • This soup is perfect as a make-ahead meal for the freezer. Simply prepare each component and freeze separately. When you plan to serve, defrost the stock overnight. Bring to a simmer and add the chicken, meatballs, and beans all at once. The pasta can be added once the soup comes to as simmer. As above, the escarole should be added just before serving.
  • This soup can be made with Parmigiano-Reggiano but that could be quite pricey. Do not use the fake stuff in a can. Ever. For any reason. Please buy block cheese and grate yourself unless you’ve got a deli that you trust to not add fillers. Fillers can throw off the texture of what you are cooking.
  • The soup is a terrific second day soup and freezes very well but know that the pasta will become slightly mushy; a guilty pleasure for me.
Keyword cheese croutons, chicken, chicken soup, croutons, family recipe, hearty soup, Italian meatballs, minestrone, pasta, soup, vegetables