Wedding soup or Italian wedding soup is an Italian

soup Soup is a primarily liquid food, generally served warm or hot (but may be cool or cold), that is made by combining ingredients of meat or vegetables with stock, milk, or water. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ing ...

consisting of green vegetables and meat. It is popular in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, where it is a staple in many Italian restaurants. It is an ancient recipe, actually not widespread today.

Origin

The term ''wedding soup'' comes from a mistranslation of the Italian language phrase ''minestra maritata'' ('married soup'), which is a reference to the flavor produced by the combination or "marriage" of greens and the meat. The ''minestra maritata'' recipe is also prepared by the families of

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and

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

. Some form of ''minestra maritata'' was long popular in

Toledo, Spain Toledo ( , ) is a city and municipality of Spain, capital of the province of Toledo and the ''de jure'' seat of the government and parliament of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha. Toledo was declare ...

, before pasta became an affordable commodity to most Spaniards.

Ingredients

Wedding soup consists of green vegetables (usually

endive Endive () is a leaf vegetable belonging to the genus ''Cichorium'', which includes several similar bitter-leafed vegetables. Species include '' Cichorium endivia'' (also called endive), ''Cichorium pumilum'' (also called wild endive), and ''Cich ...

and

escarole Endive () is a leaf vegetable belonging to the genus ''Cichorium'', which includes several similar bitter-leafed vegetables. Species include '' Cichorium endivia'' (also called endive), ''Cichorium pumilum'' (also called wild endive), and ''Cich ...

cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of ''Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.&nb ...

, lettuce,

kale Kale (), or leaf cabbage, belongs to a group of cabbage (''Brassica oleracea'') cultivars grown for their edible leaves, although some are used as ornamentals. Kale plants have green or purple leaves, and the central leaves do not form a head ...

, and/or

spinach Spinach (''Spinacia oleracea'') is a leafy green flowering plant native to central and western Asia. It is of the order Caryophyllales, family Amaranthaceae, subfamily Chenopodioideae. Its leaves are a common edible vegetable consumed either f ...

) and meat (usually meatballs and/or

sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

, the latter sometimes made of

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

and containing Italian parsley and parmesan cheese) in a clear chicken-based broth. Wedding soup sometimes contains

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, are som ...

(usually cavatelli,

fusilli Fusilli () are a variety of pasta that are formed into corkscrew or helical shapes. The word ''fusilli'' presumably comes from ''fuso'' ("spindle"), as traditionally it is "spun" by pressing and rolling a small rod over the thin strips of pasta to ...

acini di pepe Acini di pepe are a form of pasta. The name is Italian for "seeds of pepper". Acini is the plural of acino whose root is the Latin word ''acinus''. In both Latin and Italian, the word means "grape" or "grape-stones", with the "stones of a grape ...

pastina ''Pastina'' (Italian: literally, "little pasta") is a variety of pasta consisting of tiny pieces of pasta, typically of a round (irregular) shape with a diameter of about 1.6 millimetres (1/16"). It is the smallest type of pasta produced. It is ...

orzo Orzo (, ; from , from Latin ), also known as risoni (; 'large rains ofrice'), is a form of short-cut pasta, shaped like a large grain of rice. Orzo is traditionally made from flour, but it can also be made of whole grain. It is often made with ...

, etc.), lentils,

carrots The carrot (''Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in color, though purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild carrot, ''Daucus carota'', nativ ...

, or grated

parmesan Parmesan ( it, Parmigiano Reggiano; ) is an Italian hard, granular cheese produced from cows’ milk and aged at least 12 months. It is named after two of the areas which produce it, the provinces of Parma and Reggio Emilia (''Parmigiano'' is ...

cheese.

References

External links

{{cookbook, Easy Wedding Soup
About.com page on the history of wedding soup
Italian soups Italian-American cuisine Cuisine of Campania

Origin

Ingredients

See also

References

External links