So as you all know I am a hopeless romantic. I love everything about Valentines Day-chocolate in heart shaped boxes, romantic dinners for 2, last minute gifts from your man that he bought that morning filled with no thought at all, those nasty chalky conversation hearts, crowded restaurants, over priced roses and cards that gush about love however you only get them once a year for the most commercial holiday on the planet.

Oh wait that's right I actually think Valentine's Day is bullshit...just saying...if you actually want to know how I really feel. I am more of that girl that wants gifts for no reason, loves surprises that remind you that someone is thinking of you, enjoys random notes left in odd places and amazing restaurants on days where you can actually hear the conversation. Sorry Hallmark if you had gotten on the Groundhog Day bandwagon I would be way more supportive!!! Just saying. Or get this Feb 20th is National Handcuff Day now that is a holiday with potential.

But this is a food and wine blog not a let Danah bitch about how she feels about random things blog. So let me just say I read way too many magazines...they are perfect for my attention span or lack thereof and I love the random tidbits of info I gather through them. So in a lot of the magazines this month there are articles like the chicken recipe that will get you the man of your dreams or the steak that lets your man know you love him or chocolate cake that is sinful for that special someone. Really? Now this holiday is infiltrating and clouding my love of food as well...so even if those recipes sound good I have consciously decided to boycott them. Maybe I will make them for say St. Patricks Day but I refuse to get sucked into this debacle.



However, in keeping with the theme I made Italian Wedding Soup. Did you know that this soup got its name out of a mistranslation? It was originally called minestra maritata which means married soup and was in reference to the fact that green vegetables and meat go well together. So from there it became known as Italian Wedding Soup which is traditionally a meatball and vegetable soup. Did you also know that it is not served at Italian weddings in Italy but it has become common place in United States Italian weddings. Go figure!

So this particular recipe came from Food Network and it has pork meatballs, orzo pasta and vegetables. The broth is flavored with Parmesan rind which recently has become one of my favorite flavoring ingredients to stock...love the nutty cheesy flavor it provides. The soup is very easy to make. Saute the onions and carrots in olive oil and then add garlic, Worcestershire (hate saying that word) and sage and saute for another minute. Add the chicken broth, water and Parmesan rind and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 7 minutes.



 The meatballs were also very easy to make just mix the ground pork, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic, Worcestershire and sage in a bowl. Form into balls. I thought it would be a challenge to find ground pork and I was even debating with friends whether or not I could use sausage however low and behold I went to Fresh and Easy and there ground pork sat on the shelf waiting for me to bring it home. I also debated on how big to make the meatballs since as you know I have a tendency to super size everything-cookies, pancakes, meatballs, etc. So do I make them small like in albondigas soup or do I make them regular meatball size. I opted for something in the middle so when you were eating them in your soup you did have to cut them in half unless you had a really big mouth but I was happy with how they turned out overall.

After the soup has simmered bring it back to a boil and add the orzo pasta. Then add the meatballs and I learned that meatballs are kind of like raviolis once they float to the top they are done. Add the spinach at the end and cook until its wilted and voila. I do have to admit that I did add some salt just because I love salt but yesterday was a little chilly and this soup was very comforting, healthy and the perfect way to end a perfect day....oh and yeah super romantic.