Co: Escarole Soup with Tiny Meatballs

So, Sacha has come up with an idea of having a "food of the week." This week's food is escarole. I realize this might not be a popular green with many people, but for a lesbian cook like me, raised by an Italian grandmother, it's my kind of food!

This dish I've made twice--once for just me and Lo and a second time when my mother-in-law and Lo's cousin Deana were over. This is a nice comforting soup for winter time (apologies! I know it's technically spring, but for some of us, it still doesn't feel like it) and I love escarole (pronounced schke-dahl the way Grandmom used to say it)! In fact, I love all bitter greens! Gimme escarole! Gimme kale!

Anyway, I got this recipe from The Brooklyn Cookbook, which I bought used at a bookstore. My copy is a little moldier than I would like as a result, but it's a fabulous book. It has recipes broken down by both Brooklyn neighborhood and nationality. This particular recipe is credited to the Gaimaros, and appears in the Italian section of the cookbook.

To make the soup, beat 3 eggs together with 1/2 cup grated cheese (a mixture of 1/4 cup parmesan and 1/4 cup romano). Then, chop a full head of escarole (or almost a full head) and set aside. Make the tiny meatballs by mixing together about 1/2 pound of ground chuck, 1 TB breadcrumbs, 2 tsp minced parsley, 1 clove minced garlic, and 1 TB of the egg/cheese mixture. Mix it up really good with your hands. Then roll into meatballs, each about the size of a large marble.

Heat 6 cups of chicken broth on the stove. When it simmers, add the chopped escarole and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then, add the meatballs and cook for another 5 minutes. Finally, add what is left of the egg/cheese mixture and stir. The egg/cheese mixture forms cheesy little egg drops and then you're done.

See? Except for the chopping and meatball molding, this is definitely a meal on the quick. And honestly, the chopping and molding doesn't take very long either.

Lo has bought bread both times I've made this soup. I think we've tried sourdough bread, Italian bread, and sodabread with this and, all worked really well for dipping into the soup. In addition to the bread, I have served this with mixed vegetables and salad.

All in all, a fairly simple but really comforting and filling meal, especially for a soup.