Grandma Salazar's Albondigas Soup CL 5/05

[gardenmom]

Just made Grandma Salazar's Albondigas Soup from May 2005 Cooking Light, and I could find no reviews on the Bulletin Board or Recipe Reviews.

It has a nice springtime flavor. Lots of meatballs, which are tasty. I think you could even add a bit more broth, and green beans, corn, more tomatoes, etc. to the broth at the last 10 minutes.

Very Yummy and satisfying meal.

[Canice]

I haven't read May yet and I was intrigued by your review so I pulled the recipe off the Web site. It sounds wonderful, and I just love Trace Des Jardins - she's fantastic!

Grandma Salazar's Albóndigas Soup

Traci Des Jardins has fond memories of her grandmother's recipe for this soup and has reinterpreted it for her menu at Mijita. Chilling the meatballs for 20 minutes helps them hold their shape when cooked. Albóndigas (ahl-bon-dee-gas) is Spanish for meatballs.


1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup short-grain rice
Cooking spray
2 cups chopped onion, divided
1 (1-ounce) slice white bread
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro, divided
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 pound lean ground pork
1/2 pound ground sirloin
2 large egg whites
1 cup chopped carrot
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup chopped seeded peeled tomato (about 8 ounces)
4 cups (1 [32-ounce] carton) fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 cups chopped zucchini
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Pour water over rice, and let stand 20 minutes. Drain.

Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 1/2 cup onion to pan; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.

Place bread in a food processor; pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure 1 1/4 cups. Combine rice, cooked onion, breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup cilantro, cumin, 1/4 teaspoon salt, oregano, pork, sirloin, and egg whites, stirring well. Shape mixture into 29 (1-inch) meatballs. Chill for 20 minutes.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 10 meatballs, and cook 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove meatballs from pan; drain well on paper towels. Wipe drippings from pan with a paper towel. Repeat procedure with cooking spray and remaining meatballs. Return pan to heat. Coat with cooking spray. Add remaining 1 1/2 cups onion, carrot, and garlic to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add tomato to pan, stirring to combine. Stir in broth; bring mixture to a boil. Add meatballs and mint to pan. Reduce heat, and simmer 35 minutes. Add zucchini, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to pan. Cook 10 minutes. Garnish with remaining 1/4 cup cilantro.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 cup soup and 1 1/2 teaspoons cilantro)

CALORIES 181 (21% from fat); FAT 4.4g (satfat 1.6g, monofat 0.6g, polyfat 0.3g); PROTEIN 15.5g; CARBOHYDRATE 20.4g; FIBER 2.9g; CHOLESTEROL 36mg; IRON 1.9mg; SODIUM 500mg; CALCIUM 43mg;
Cooking Light, MAY 2005

[gardenmom]

thanks for posting the recipe. I'm kind of clumsy with the computer, and I end up typing the recipes rather than copy clipping or providing a link. Gotta work on that.

But good luck with the soup. I'm looking forward to adding a bit more broth and maybe a little more veggies to my leftovers and having the soup again tonight!

(this is a good recipe. My mom made albondigas soup when we were growing up, and we also ate it in restaurants, and this is a good recipe for a soup that I really like, but somehow forget to make. I'm glad it was in this issue. It is really fresh tasting)

[Varaile]

Thanks for the reivew and the suggestions!

I flagged this one after making a Mexican Meatball Soup (CL Annual 05, pg 355) that we really enjoyed. :) I hope to make this in a week or so, depending on work schedules and what-not.

[fldivegirl]

I want the t-shirt that Traci is wearing with the "skelly" chef!