Spaghetti and Meatball Soup combines delicious sausage meatballs and pasta in an easy and savory and flavor-packed tomato soup recipe! This can be made in your Crock Pot or on the stove top for a dinner idea everyone will love!
In a soup kinda mood? Make sure to try my Chicken Noodle Soup with Homemade Stock!
Spaghetti and Meatball Soup Is Pure Comfort Food!
Pasta is one of the purest forms of comfort food…a big bowl of noodles on a chilly day is my idea of cozy! Now, let’s take that bowl of pasta, turn it into a tomato soup and add in a few meatballs…what you get is Spaghetti and Meatball Soup. It’s flavor packed, simple to make, and will be easily become a family favorite!
Spaghetti and Meatball Soup Can Be Made In the Crock Pot OR On the Stove Top!
The great thing about this dinner recipe, is that it is totally versatile! You can adjust the flavors, the add-ins, and even the cooking method to suit you needs. I’ll share the instructions for both stove top and slow cooker below, but here are a few easy flavor alterations:
- Don’t have Italian Sausage for the meatballs? Use ground beef instead…or use a combo of ground beef and ground sausage. You can even use the “Meatloaf Mix” the sell at the grocery store that is a mix of ground beef, ground pork, and ground veal! I like using Italian sausage in the meatballs because it packs a HUGE flavor punch, but if you’re not a big sausage guy, switch it up!
- Don’t have spaghetti? Literally the easiest swap! Add in linguine, fettuccini, bucatini, or any noodle-style pasta you like! You can even use a penne or rigatoni if that’s all you have in a pinch!
- Want to lower sodium content? Use a low sodium broth, or use less broth and more water! The marinara and the broth combined really adds flavor, so you can adjust the amounts of the broth as desired.
- Make it creamy! Add a few splashes of heavy cream at the end of cooking to make this a creamy-style soup!
- Make it spicy! Add a little more crushed red pepper to the meatballs and soup, or use spicy sausage instead of mild in the meatballs!
Ingredients:
- Ground Italian Sausage. I like using sweet Italian sausage, but you can use spicy if you like the heat!
- Panko breadcrumbs. I use plain panko in this recipe because there are a lot of other flavor-makers in this recipe that you don’t need to use flavored breadcrumbs as well.
- Milk
- Eggs
- Garlic powder
- Kosher salt
- Crushed red pepper flakes
- Beef stock or broth
- Marinara Sauce. Any brand will do, although I love Rao’s.
- Dried basil
- Parmesan rind. I add in a Parmesan rind while this is cooking to add flavor. This is optional, but if you have one in your fridge give it a try!
- Spaghetti. But like I said above you can use just about any type of noodle-style pasta!
Crock Pot Instructions:
- Combine the ground sausage, breadcrumbs, milk, eggs, garlic powder, salt, and red pepper flakes using your hands in a large bowl. Mix until ingredients are incorporated, but not over-mixed. Form the mixture into 1- inch meatballs and place onto a lined and sprayed baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes at 400°F.
- Place the meatballs in a slow cooker and Add in the beef stock, Marinara sauce, water, basil, and Parmesan rind. Cook for 3 – 4 hours on high or 6 – 8 hours on low.
- Remove the Parmesan rind and add in the dried pasta and stir. Cover and cook for an additional 20 minutes, or until the pasta is tender.
Stove Top Instructions:
If you would prefer to make this on the stove top, no problem!
- Make the meatballs as directed and then follow the remaining instructions but use a large Dutch oven or stock pot instead of the slow cooker.
- Add in 1 extra cup of beef stock or water, as the soup will reduce cooking it on the stove top.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes on the stove top to allow the flavors to combine.
- Add in the pasta and cook for 10 – 15 minutes until the pasta is tender.
Garnish Ideas:
- A dollop of ricotta cheese
- Fresh Parsley
- Fresh Basil
- Grated Parmesan cheese
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- Garlic Bread to soak up all that soup!
Description
Spaghetti and Meatball Soup is your favorite classic comfort dish made even cozier! This soup is outrageously delicious, and simple to make in your slow cooker, or on the stove top!
- 2 pounds ground Italian sausage
- 3/4 cups plain Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 eggs, lightly whisked
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 4 cups beef stock
- 1 (24- jar) Marinara Sauce
- 2 cups water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
- optional – 1 Parmesan rind
- 8 ounces spaghetti, broken in thirds
- garnish – Parmesan cheese, Ricotta cheese, fresh parsley
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and coat with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine the sausage, breadcrumbs, milk, eggs, garlic powder, salt, and red pepper flakes using your hands. Mix until ingredients are incorporated, but not over-mixed. Form the mixture into 1- inch meatballs and place onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the meatballs for 15 minutes, or until cooked.
- Place the meatballs in a slow cooker. Add in the beef stock, Marinara sauce, water, basil, and Parmesan rind if using. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours.
- Remove Parmesan rind and add in the dried pasta and stir. Cover and cook for an additional 20 minutes, or until the pasta is tender.
- Serve warm, garnishing with Parmesan cheese, a dollop of Ricotta, and fresh parsley if desired.
Notes
Store airtight in the fridge for up to 3 days. The pasta will soak up the liquid as it sits, so you can add more broth or water when you reheat it if necessary.
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