By: Kitchennube
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Ingredients
Serves Tool
Serves To:USMetric| 1 | large onion | ||
| 1 | egg, lightly beaten | ||
| 1/4 | Cup(c) | plain dry bread crumbs | |
| 3 | Ounce(oz) | sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil, finely chopped | |
| 2 | Teaspoon(t) | italian seasoning, dried | |
| 1 | Pound(lb) | 93% lean ground beef | |
| 2 | Teaspoon(t) | extra virgin olive oil | |
| 1 | large fennel bulb | ||
| 56 | Ounce(oz) | chicken broth | |
| 6 | Clove(clv) | garlic, thinly sliced | |
| 1/2 | Teaspoon(t) | white pepper, freshly ground | |
| 1 | Cup(c) | orzo pasta | |
| 5 | Cup(c) | fresh spinach, shredded |
Preparation
Finely chop one third of the onion and thinly slice the remaining onion. In medium sized bowl, combine the chopped onion, egg, bread crumbs, sun dried tomatoes and 1 teaspoon of the Italian seasoning. Add ground beef and mix well. Shape into 12 meatballs. In large skillet, brown meatballs in hot oil. Drain off fat. Place meatballs and the sliced onion in 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 quart slow cooker. Cut off and discard upper stalks of fennel. If desired, save some of the feathery leaves for a garnish. Remove any wilted outer layers. Cut off a thin slice from fennel base. Cut fennel into thin wedges. Add fennel, chicken broth, garlic, white pepper and the remaining 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning to slow cooker. Cover slow cooker. Cook on low heat setting for 8 to 10 hours, or on high heat setting for 4 to 5 hours. If necessary, raise temperature to high heat setting. Gently stir uncooked orzo into mixture in slow cooker. Cover slow cooker and cook for 15 minutes longer. Stir in spinach. If desired, garnish soup with reserved fennel leaves.