Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup

Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup is flavourful, comforting, and tastes like it came straight from Nonna’s kitchen. This hearty crock pot soup contains juicy Italian sausage meatballs, tiny acini di pepe pasta, carrots, celery, and spinach in a rich broth – perfect for chilly days or when you want an easy, wholesome meal that feels like a hug in a bowl.

Looking for another easy slow cooker soup recipe? Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup is the number one request from my family. It is delicious with freshly baked Dinner Rolls for dipping. 

Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup

Italian Wedding Soup is one of the most beloved American Italian soups. It’s comforting and hearty, yet incredibly light in flavour. Like many American Italian recipes, the traditional version originated in Italy but became Americanized through immigrant innovation.

In southern Italy, Italian Wedding Soup or minestra maritata, is a hearty yet humble soup made using rustic seasonal ingredients. It is NOT a common dish at wedding banquets, and it rarely contains meatballs or pasta. In fact, minestra maritata translates into ‘married soup’, referring to how the flavours ‘marry together’.

Italian Wedding Soup shares a few similarities (poultry stock, garlic, vegetables) to Italian Penicillin Soup, though the former tends to be brothier with very few vegetables and tiny pasta (pastina) such as ditalini or acini di pepe. Both versions make great soul-warming remedies for colds and flus.

This simple soup is so common in North America that I remember buying it for my kids at our local IKEA cafeteria. They would go NUTs for the mini pasta and meatball combination. Now that they are older, they see Italian Wedding Soup as pure comfort food.

What is Pastina?

Pastina is a general Italian term for tiny pasta, typically of a round (irregular) shape with a diameter of about two millimetres (¹⁄₁₆ inch). It is used as an ingredient of soup, desserts, infant food and as a distinct and unique pasta dish of its own.

This Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup recipe contains acini di pepe which are tiny pasta balls like tiny fregola. However, you can use other tiny pasta shapes like ditalini (tiny tubes), anelli (tiny rings), stelline (little stars), or even orzo (like rice).

Ingredients for Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup

Quality chicken (or turkey) stock is the key to exceptional flavour, especially in a soup recipe with very few ingredients. Feel free to use high quality store-bought stock in place of homemade to save time and effort.

• Italian Sausage
• Carrots
• Celery
• Onion
• Garlic
• Chicken Broth
• Italian Seasoning
• Salt
• Black Pepper
• Acini di pepe
• Baby Spinach
• Parmesan Reggiano

Italian sausage is sold as premade fresh sausage links or as seasoned ground pork sausage meat. Feel free to use mild or hot Italian sausage for this soup recipe.

Simple aromatics like garlic and the Italian soffritto (celery, carrots, onions) flavour the stock will adding nutrition, along with the baby spinach.

In addition to freshly ground black pepper season the soup with salt and Italian seasoning. To make your own Italian seasoning: combine 1 Tablespoon dried Basil, 1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano, 1/2 Tablespoon dried Rosemary with a pinch each of Thyme and Marjoram.

The finishing touch is a dusting of finely grated Parmesan Reggiano.

How to Make Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup

Let’s start with the meatballs! Use clean hands to roll the Italian sausage meat into small, bite-sized meatballs (about 1 inch each). You should get around 20–24 mini meatballs.

In a skillet over medium heat add the sausage meatballs (and a touch of olive oil if you have it) and brown them on all sides (they don’t need to be cooked through). Transfer meatballs to a 4-6 quart slow cooker. Next add carrots, celery, onion, and garlic to the slow cooker insert.

Pour in chicken broth, then stir in 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning, salt, and freshly ground black pepper.

Cover and cook soup on LOW for 5–6 hours or HIGH for 3–4 hours, until the vegetables are tender and meatballs are fully cooked. About 30 minutes before serving, stir in the acini di pepe pasta. Cover and cook until pasta is tender.

Finally, stir in the fresh baby spinach and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Let the soup cook for another 5–10 minutes, just until spinach wilts.

Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Ladle into bowls and top with extra Parmesan Reggiano. Serve with crusty bread.

Recipe Substitutions and Variations

• Swap the Italian sausage for ground chicken or turkey sausage. Or use a mixture of ground beef and pork.
• Instead of Acini di pepe try other small pasta like orzo, ditalini, or stelline.
• Skip the fresh Spinach and use other greens like kale, Swiss chard, or escarole.
• Swap the Parmesan Reggiano for other hard Italian cheeses like Romano or Asiago.
• Instead of Chicken broth use turkey broth or try vegetable broth for a lighter flavour.

Spicy Version: Use hot Italian sausage and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Creamy Version: Stir in ½ cup heavy cream or evaporated milk before serving.

Vegetable-Packed: Add diced zucchini or peas for extra color and flavour.

Recipe Tips & Tricks

• Make small meatballs: They cook evenly and stay tender in the slow cooker.
• Brown first for flavour: A quick sear keeps the meatballs from falling apart.
• Add pasta at the end: Acini di pepe cooks quickly, don’t add too soon.
• Adjust broth: Add extra broth or water before serving if the soup thickens.

How to Store Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup

Store leftover Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat gently on the stove with a splash of broth or water.

Make ahead: Make the soup stopping short of adding the pasta. Cool to room temperature and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat gently on the stove and add pasta and spinach when reheating.

Hi! I’m Bernice Hill, the heart and soul behind Dish ‘n’ the Kitchen. It is my pleasure to share easy to follow recipes that are delicious, nutritious, and approachable for the whole family.

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