Wedding Soup

There are moments that can remind you what life is all about…sometimes big and sometimes small.  Last weekend was one of those bigger moments, my sister’s wedding.  The amount of love and joy surrounding the weekend was very special to be a part of.  Two families coming together to create a day that will always be remembered.  From the week of prep leading up to the festivities to the kick-off with rehearsal to the main event and reliving stories the next morning at breakfast, lots of great memories were made.  

Here is a quick overview of some of my favorite moments:

-          Teaming up with Matt to tie all the purple bows on the chairs. 

-          Getting nails done with my mom and Ann…the Klindt ladies max’in and relax’in

-          Libby bringing us Starbucks at the crack of dawn on Saturday morning before all the primping began – you were a life saver!

-          Standing at Ann’s side while she said her vows

-          Not realizing Ann and Matt were racing up the aisle with her veil still in my hand (ya, I almost pulled it out of her hair accidentally) – NOT my best moment…whoops!

-          Seeing everyone all dressed up, especially my Aunt Colleen who hasn’t worn a dress/skirt in many years…she looked GREAT!

-          Matt’s Aunt Cis finding me water at the cocktail reception (with all flurry of activities, I had forgotten to drink anything).

-          Tromping through the fields with the wedding party to get some AMAZING pictures.

-          Nailing my MOH speech

-          Sharing a special gift with Ann and Matt – a wine label with a description of their relationship (see below)

-          Dancing with my Grandma Cole, my last surviving grandparent

-          Hanging out with my closest friends…the cool kids club…you know who you are!

-          Phil ‘bringing it’ even though he took the red eye from London to make the wedding.

-          Dancing with Greg

-          Photo booth pictures with Ann and Matt’s life size cut out

-          The late night hot dogs

-       Matt proving me wrong...his failure status in the "dancing pillar" has been upgraded to a solid B, and A for effort.

I could go on and on!  Now, this week’s recipe post is not only fitting because it has wedding in the name, but I was also inspired to make it because Joyce Schumacher made a great batch of wedding soup while we were in Ohio.  I don’t think I quite replicated her recipe (I need to get if from her), but this was a great first attempt at making it. This isn’t 100% a true wedding soup, as I have taken some liberties, but it tastes like it.  I would recommend going low sodium for the chicken stock/broth…the sausage and other ingredients subtly flavor it.  You can always add more salt in if needed. 

And…for Meredith Stanton, one of my blog readers and one of Ann’s oldest friends who was at the wedding, she requested more quick weeknight dinners.  I am not sure if the kids would like this, but it is quick (especially if you use frozen meatballs and any leftover chicken you may have had from a previous dinner).  Just chop and throw in...you really can't mess it up.

The Wine Label

Photo Booth

Reunited!

MOH Speech

Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts

1 package Frozen Meatballs (I used about 20)

2 tablespoons good olive oil

1 cup minced yellow onion

1 cup diced carrots (3 carrots), cut into 1/4 inch pieces

3/4 cup diced celery (2 stalks), cut into 1/4 inch pieces

10 cups homemade chicken stock

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup small pasta

4-6 cups of spinach

Directions:

Cook ~1.5 cups of pasta until a little before al dente (It will finish cooking in the soup).  Parboil chicken breasts until cooked through.  Shred the chicken breast and set aside.

While pasta and chicken are boiling, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a large soup pot. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and saute until softened, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and shredded chicken to the simmering broth.  Add the frozen meatballs to the soup (cut meatballs in half for more of a bite size) and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste for salt and pepper – the sausage does a good job flavoring the soup. Stir in the fresh spinach and cook for 1 minute, until the spinach is just wilted.

Recipe Inspiration: Food Network & Joyce Schumacher

Picture Source: Lindsay Klindt