Meatball Soup (Sopa de Albóndigas)

In Mexico, albóndigas (meatballs) are sometimes made with rice used as the binding agent. Other times, rice is in the soup.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 2/3 cups)

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  coriander seeds
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  cumin seeds
• 4  whole cloves
• 1  (3-inch) cinnamon stick, broken
• 1/2  cup  uncooked long-grain white rice
• 2  tablespoons  grated fresh onion
• 3/4  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1  pound  ground round
• 1  large egg white
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• Cooking spray
• 3  cups  chopped green cabbage
• 2  cups  chopped onion
• 1  cup  sliced carrot
• 1/2  cup  chopped celery
• 1  tablespoon  chili powder
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  drained chopped chipotle chile in adobo sauce
• 2  (14-ounce) cans fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped (such as Muir Glen)
• 1 1/2  cups  cubed peeled baking potato

Preparation

Cook the coriander seeds and the cumin seeds in a large Dutch oven over medium heat 1 minute or until toasted and fragrant. Place the toasted spices, cloves, and cinnamon in a spice or coffee grinder; process until finely ground.

Combine 2 teaspoons cinnamon mixture, rice, grated onion, 1/2 teaspoon salt, beef, egg white, and garlic in a large bowl; set remaining cinnamon mixture aside. Shape beef mixture into 24 (1-inch) meatballs.

Heat pan over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add cabbage, chopped onion, carrot, and celery to pan; cook 8 minutes, stirring frequently. Add remaining cinnamon mixture, chili powder, and chipotle; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt, broth, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer. Add meatballs; cover and cook 15 minutes. Add potato; cook, uncovered, over medium heat 20 minutes or until potato is tender.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

330 (34% from fat)

Fat:

12.4g (sat 4.6g,mono 5.2g,poly 0.6g)

Protein:

20.6g

Carbohydrate:

34.5g

Fiber:

4.9g

Cholesterol:

51mg

Iron:

4mg

Sodium:

780mg

Calcium:

97mg