Mexican Meatball Soup

Ingredients

1/3 cup raw white rice
1 cup water
1 medium red onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
1 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 pound lean ground beef
2 quarts beef broth
1 bay leaf
2 medium carrots, cut into ¼ inch pieces
1 (3” long) red chili, seeded and thinly sliced
1/3 cup Madeira Wine

Directions

In a small pot bring water to a boil. Add the rice. Boil 5 minutes; drain. Place rice in a large mixing bowl.
Add the chopped onion, coriander, bread crumbs, egg, milk, salt, garlic and oregano. Blend thoroughly.
Add the beef, blend into the rice/bread mixture.
Shape the meat into 1” meatballs. There should be about 30*.
In a 4-6 quart pot combine the broth, bay leaf, carrots and chili. Bring to a boil. Add the meatballs, cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Add the Madeira and simmer 1 minute longer. Remove the bay leaf before serving.
Makes about 2½ quarts, 6 servings. Soup can be kept refrigerated for up to a week; freezes perfectly for up to six months.

~Source - Soup Suppers by Arthur Schwartz (found in Patti’s Cookbook Library)

Patti’s notes: A little time saver: I mix the meat and then put the broth, carrots, etc. to boil before making the balls. I got about 60 meatballs with a little less than a pound of ground beef. It’s kind of spicy but registers high on the M-M-Good scale.
Easy Meter – The only tricky thing is getting making the meatballs because if you don’t compact each one enough they will fall apart. If you compact them too much they will be too firm. Just take a heaping tablespoon of meat, roll it in the palm of your hands 3 or 4 times and be done with it.