weeknight meal

Italian Meatball Soup Recipe

Abby H.

I posted about this soup earlier in the week on Instagram. It’s easy to make and is super filling. The best part is that you can make it as simple or elevated as you want, and as your budget allows

If you like to make everything from scratch, make your own meatballs and tomato soup. On a financial or time budget- use premade. I double-checked and all ingredients are available at Dollar Tree, so even the tightest budget can try it!

Italian Meatball Soup

Ingredients:

  • 8-12 meatballs (I used these Smithfield Power Bites)
  • 1 can/jar Tomato Basil Soup (I used Rao)
  • 1 14.5oz can salt-free diced tomatoes
  • 6 Oz (half of a 12 oz. bag) frozen onion and pepper blend (I used my slap chopper to make the onions and peppers much smaller pieces)
  • 1T butter or oil
  • 1T minced garlic 
  • 2T chopped sun-dried tomatoes and 1T of the oil 
  • 1c. pasta shape of your choice (I used medium shells)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • parmesan cheese

Directions:

  1. In a deep pot, warm oil and saute the frozen onion and pepper until the onions are translucent and fragrant about 10-15 minutes.
  2. Add in garlic, and sundried tomatoes and it’s oil and stir frequently, until garlic is fragrant.
  3. Add in the soup, bay leaf, meatballs (mine were frozen), and canned tomatoes.
  4. Allow soup to cook covered on medium/low for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Pour uncooked pasta into soup, turn to low, and cover again. cook on low for about 10 minutes. Remove bay leaf and serve.
  6. Top each serving with parmesan cheese as desired.

This recipe makes 4-6 servings. It can be easily doubled or tripled.

Tips:

  • It freezes well also.
  • It can be made vegan or vegetarian. Use vegan/vegetarian meatballs and soup.
  • GLUTEN FREE: Substitute GF Meatballs and Pasta

Family Recipe: Easy Chicken Parm Meatloaf!

Abby H.

046I found a cache of yummy, frugal family recipes, so I’ll be posting them over the next few weeks.

Most of these were formulated by my relatives to feed a hungry, hard-working family with kids. Everyone in my family is frugal, so these recipes won’t contain any expensive or strange ingredients in small quantities- There is nothing worse than trying a new recipe only to find you only need 2 Tablespoons of an ingredient that you’ve never used before, or worse yet, only comes in a HUGE container/package.

I will try to include the sides that we’ve traditionally served with the main dish to round out the meal.

Chicken Parm Meatloaf (serves 6)

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground chicken
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup bread crumbs (I use Italian seasoned)
  • 1 tablespoons Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
  • 1/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 3 Tablespoons onions, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh white mushrooms, stems removed, cleaned and chopped into bite-size pieces
  • 1 t. Salt and pepper (each)
  • 1/2 c. Your favorite red pasta sauce

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Grease a loaf pan
  3. In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients, except for pasta sauce.  Mix well until all ingredients are well combined and mixture resembles a meaty paste (about 3-5 minutes of mixing)
  4. Pour into a greased loaf pan, shape into a tidy loaf.
  5. Pour pasta sauce over the top of the loaf.
  6. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until meat is cooked through. If you are using a meat thermometer, it should read 165 Degrees. I use this one.

I serve this dish with a green salad and Riced Caulifower with Italian Cheese.