Tired of ordering take-out every night? Want authentic Mexican food, but your next family gathering is months away? Please don't wait for someone else to create magic in the kitchen; create it yourself! The following recipe is my father’s take on classic albondigas traditional Mexican soup. It’s a fusion of Italian and Mexican dishes. 

As the story goes, it was a very cold and blustery day. My father had a craving for albondigas but did not have any of the traditional spices (cumin, cilantro, and Mexican oregano) on hand. Not wanting to go out and buy them, he used what he had in the fridge and pantry and created the following dish. It’s a great reminder that cooking is very different than baking—you can be as creative as you want and improvise to get the result you want. Where baking is relatively rigid (one cup of flour means one cup!), cooking allows flexibility. So, as you read the recipe below, feel free to revise it to fit your needs!

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Meatballs

• 1 lb. ground beef & 1/2 lb. pork (if you can swing grass-fed beef, it will make a difference in taste).

• 1 egg, slightly beaten

• ½ cup dry bread crumbs

• 1/4 to 1/3 cup dry, uncooked, short-grained white rice

• 1 small onion finely chopped (about ¼ cup)

• ¼ cup whole milk

• 1 tablespoon snipped parsley

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Soup

• 2 cans (14 ½ ounces) fire-roasted diced tomatoes (my father uses Muir Glenn Organic)

• 1 can (10 ½ ounces) condensed beef broth

• 2 cups of water

• 2 medium carrots cut into ½ slices (about 2 cups)

• 2 medium potatoes cut into ½ pieces (about 1 cup)

• 1 small stalk celery, chopped (about ¼ cup)

• ¼ cup chopped parsley

• 1 envelope (about 1 ½ ounce) onion soup mix

• ½ teaspoon dried basil leaves

• ¼ teaspoon pepper

• 1 bay leaf

Directions:

Mix ground meat combo, egg, bread crumbs, dry rice, onion, milk, 1 tablespoon parsley, and salt. Shape into 1 ½ - inch balls. Cook meatballs in olive oil in Dutch oven until lightly brown. Remove and set aside meatballs; drain fat from Dutch oven.  

Mix tomatoes (with liquid) and remaining ingredients in the Dutch oven; break up tomatoes with a fork or mash with a large spoon. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add meatballs back in, cover tightly, and simmer for an additional 20-25 minutes. 

Serves 8

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