Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meatballs

This soup far, far exceeded expectations.  I didn't even expect to like it much but I absolutely loved it!  Plus, it's pretty darn healthy.  Excuse the lighting on the pictures though.  

This recipe is from Clean Eating Magazine.  

First you need to make some turkey meatballs.  
You'll need 3/4 pound of ground turkey, breadcrumbs, an egg and Italian seasoning or oregano and basil. 

Mix those ingredients together.

The nice thing about ground turkey and chicken is that you don't have to be super careful mixing it like you do with ground beef.  You can really pack it together without it becoming tough.

Roll the turkey mixture into about 30-40 small meatballs.

I placed them on a plastic wrap-covered baking sheet.

Heat some oil in a large pan.

Place half the meatballs in the pan to brown.

Cook for about 2-3 minutes.

Then flip over.

Keep flipping until  browned on all sides.

Now for the soup, here's what you need:

For two people you can use half the meatballs and freeze the rest for next time.  You'll also need onions, carrots, celery, parsnip, chicken stock, orzo and spinach.  You'll also want some more Italian seasoning, chili flakes, and some parmesan cheese.  

Peel and dice the onions, carrots and parsnip and dice the celery.

Sauté in a little oil until slightly softened.  Then add some Italian seasoning and red chili flakes.

Add four cups chicken stock.  I used homemade stock for this but you can use store-bought.  Bring it to a boil.

Stir in meatballs and 1 cup of orzo pasta.  Simmer for about 15 minutes until pasta is cooked.

Add 2 cups fresh baby spinach and stir in until wilted. 

I served the soup in a shallow bowl.

Topped with curls of fresh parmesan cheese.  This is a delicious, warming soup.  It actually really thickens up almost like a stew.  It's a great, healthy meal on a cold night.