I did it! I love this soup. It is such a warming comfort food. So I finally made it myself. Before this I only got it at very few Mexican restaurants.

The recipe I used was recommended by my lovely friend Domingo Ramon Jimenez. Neither one of us are good at passing on our recipes because we don’t measure and/or can make adjustments, etc.. So the closest recipe to how he makes this, that he could find, was here http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/albondigas_soup/

My family loved it and said “Delicious”. Good enough for me.

Comment from my friend ~

Domingo Ramon Jimenez ~ Dawn congratulations again, I can see that you became an International food Connoisseur, but let me tell you that after couple of lately visits to my doctor I have to choose from two kind of foods: foods for my mouth(which I love) and food for my nourishment and it is becoming difficult for me to justify either of the choices.

This is a comfort food that has been around for many years with Mexican families…as common as Chicken Soup.

Recipe:

If fresh mint is not available, you can use a couple teaspoons of dried mint from herbal mint tea. You can also vary the vegetables depending on what you have on hand. Spring peas in their pods instead of shucked peas, for example. Or you could add some chopped fresh zucchini or corn. My mother often puts a couple extra tablespoons of chopped fresh mint directly into the soup. Feel free to substitute ground turkey for the ground beef, we do it often.

Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced
  • 3 quarts of chicken stock or beef stock OR water OR a mixture of both (we usually use half stock half water as the meatballs will create their own stock)*
  • 1/2 cup of tomato sauce
  • 1/2 lb of string beans, strings and ends removed, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
  • 1/3 cup of raw white rice
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1/4 cup of chopped fresh mint leaves
  • 1/4 cup of chopped parsley
  • 1 raw egg
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • A dash of cayenne (optional)
  • 1 1/2 cup of frozen or fresh peas
  • 1 teaspoon of dried oregano, crumbled, or 1 Tbsp fresh chopped oregano
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

*If using prepared stock, be sure to use gluten-free stock if you are cooking gluten-free.

Method

1 Heat oil in large heavy-bottomed pot (5-qt) over medium heat. Add onion and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook a minute more. Add broth mixture and tomato sauce. Bring to boil and reduce heat to simmer. Add carrots and string beans.

2 Prepare the meatballs. Mix rice into meat, adding mint leaves and parsley, salt and pepper. Mix in raw egg. Form mixture into 1-inch meatballs.

3 Add the meatballs to the simmering soup, one at a time. Cover and let simmer for 1/2 hour. Add the peas towards the end of the 1/2 hour. Add a few pinches of oregano and sprinkle with salt and pepper, and a dash of cayenne, to taste.

Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro.

Serves 6-8.

[personal note - don't over-do mint, it's a strong flavor. It's a must for authenticity but you want a 'hint' of it]
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