Minestra Maritata - Wedding Soup

While wedding soup is known to Italian-Americans, it might not have the connotation they think it has. Contrary to popular thought, it's not served at weddings. Rather, it's called "maritata" - married, because the ingredients "marry" well together to create a harmonious dish! It's a Neapolitan tradition, and an old one, at that. It dates back a few centuries, to one-pot meals that were filling and the only meal of the day for most households. It combines broth with a type of meat (most commonly sausage pieces or tiny meatballs) and greens, thus making it a hearty and nutritious soup. Drop a parmigiano rind or pecorino rind into the simmer pot to add a little extra flavor, if you have one. Some cooks add a handful of rice or pastina (tiny pasta) to it, for added oomph.

You can use vegetable or meat broth as the base. Put a big pot of it on. Then add the following three groups:

Group 1 - Soffritto (or odori)

In a skillet, add some olive oil and saute some diced celery, carrot, onion, and garlic until soft.

Group 2 - The Greens

Add a good quantity of greens of your choice - rapini, chard, chicory, escarole or kale all work well. Just wash them well, roughly chop them, then throw it all into the stock pot. Cover and let simmer to cook the greens. Some people add broccoli flourets, too.

Group 3 - The Meat

If you want sausage, buy a good quality Italian sausage (either sweet or spicy, whichever you prefer). Cut it into small pieces (called bocconcini) and put them into the soup. If you prefer the tradition of meatballs, the recipe follows. Form them into pebble sized balls, not too big! Put the meatballs into the pot to cook in the broth.

Meatballs:

about 1/3 pound of ground beef or veal
1 Italian sausage link
about 1 tbsp chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste
a handful of breadcrumbs
1 small egg

Mix it all together and form into small marble-sized meatballs.