Keto Italian Wedding Soup
Italian wedding soup without the pasta: small baked beef and Parmesan meatballs simmered in chicken broth with onion, carrot, celery, kale and cauliflower rice, finished with lemon juice and Parmesan. 5.8g net carbs a 1 1/2-cup serving.
Equipment
- Dutch oven or large soup pot
- Sheet pan
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
For the meatballs
- 1 lb ground beef 80/20
- 3 tbsp Parmesan cheese finely grated
- 1 large egg whisked
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning dried
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes optional
For the soup
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 3/4 cup carrot peeled and diced
- 3 stalks celery diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning dried
- 1/2 tsp salt plus more to taste
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 bay leaves removed before serving
- 6 cups chicken broth low-sodium if you can
- 2 cups riced cauliflower fresh or frozen
- 3 1/2 oz kale about half a bunch, stems removed, chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon juice fresh
To serve
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese finely grated
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley finely chopped
Instructions
Make the meatballs
- Mix: Heat the oven to 400°F and line a sheet pan with parchment. Combine the ground beef, 3 tbsp Parmesan cheese, egg, garlic powder, onion powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 tsp Italian seasoning and the red pepper flakes, mixing just until even.
- Roll and bake: Roll into 20 small meatballs, about 1 inch across, set them on the pan and bake about 10 minutes, turning once, until browned and cooked through.
Make the soup
- Sauté: While the meatballs bake, heat the olive oil and butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, 2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and cook 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute.
- Simmer: Add the chicken broth and bay leaves, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add the meatballs and riced cauliflower and simmer 5 minutes more, until the cauliflower is tender.
- Finish: Remove the bay leaves. Stir in the kale and cook about 2 minutes until wilted. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and season to taste.
Serve
- Serve: Ladle into bowls and top with the 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and the parsley.
Notes
Keep the meatballs small: about 1 inch across. Larger meatballs need a few more minutes in the oven.
Do not overcook the cauliflower rice: it only needs the last 5 minutes of simmering.
Nutrition is for 1 of 6 servings (about 1 1/2 cups), with regular chicken broth and the beef counted raw; the bay leaves are not counted. Low-sodium broth lowers the sodium a lot.
Storage: up to 3 days in the fridge or 2 months in the freezer. Reheat gently and add a squeeze of lemon.