Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 lb lean ground meat of your choice
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 tsp parsley
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Soup
- 4 cups low-sodium broth of your choice
- 4 cups water
- 2 small carrots, peeled & chopped
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
- 3 ounces fresh spinach, chopped
- 1 tbsp oil (for pressure cooker)
Instructions
- To make meatballs: in a large bowl, mix together all the MEATBALLS ingredients until well combined. Shape into into 1 1/2-inch balls.
Slow Cooker
- Add all the SOUP ingredients to the slow cooker. Stir to mix well.
- Make meatballs per instructions above. Add meatballs to the soup. Stir gently.
- Cook high 3-4 hours or low 6-8.
- Stir in the orzo pasta & spinach and cook an additional 15-30 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
Electric Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot)
- Turn on the Instant Pot and select Sauté. Once hot add oil to the pot.
- Add carrots and onions and cook for a 5-7 minutes or until vegetables are soft. Add garlic and cook an additional minute. Turn off pressure cooker.
- Add broth and water and deglaze the bottom of the pressure cooker by scraping all the bits off with a wooden spoon. Stir in parsley, salt, oregano, and pepper.
- Make meatballs per instructions above. Gently drop in meatballs and stir.
- Close lid and seal valve. Set HIGH pressure for 22 minutes. When done, natural release pressure for 5 minutes then manually the remaining pressure. Open lid.
- Stir in orzo and spinach. Turn pressure cooker to Sauté. Cook approximately 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently until pasta is tender.