Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup
8 Comments Apr 09, 2024
Updated May 30, 2025
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Whether you’re preparing a cozy family dinner or hosting a gathering with friends, this Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup is the perfect solution to making a delicious comfort food. Homemade meatballs, delicate pasta, and vibrant greens are featured in a flavorful broth that warms you from the inside out.
Use any leftover veggies to make Slow Cooker Lentil Soup or my tasty Slow Cooker Meatball Soup.
Italian Wedding Soup isn’t just a dish—it’s a celebration of flavor. The name comes from the perfect pairing of savory meatballs, tender greens, and tiny pasta, all simmered in a comforting broth. It’s the kind of soup that feels special but is simple enough to enjoy any night of the week.
Another Italian soup we love to make is Slow Cooker Zuppa Toscana.
Recipe Ingredients
This recipe has amazing Italian flavors. Find the full recipe in the recipe card below the images.
- For the Meatballs: Ground Italian sausage (or plain ground pork), ground beef, an egg, breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning, minced garlic, dried parsley, salt, black pepper, Parmesan cheese, and olive oil. Another soup to use up sausage is our slow cooker creamy tortellini soup.
- For the Soup: Diced celery, carrots, yellow onion, minced garlic cloves, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, fresh spinach (baby spinach works well too), salt and pepper to taste, freshly grated Parmesan (for garnish).
- Pasta: This recipe calls for Acini di pepe pasta, for this recipe the dried pasta is added to the slow cooker. The pasta is so small, it cooks up well right in the slow cooker!
How to Make Italian Wedding Soup
See my guide on how to make this in the crockpot.
Step One – In a large bowl, mix together the ground pork, ground beef, egg, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic, Italian seasoning, parsley, salt, and pepper until fully combined.
Step Two – Roll the mixture into ¾-inch meatballs. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high and sear the meatballs until browned on all sides—they don’t need to be cooked through.
Step Three – Carefully transfer the browned meatballs into the slow cooker.
Step Four – Add the celery, carrots, onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper directly to the slow cooker.
Step Five – Pour in the chicken broth and give everything a good stir.
Step Six – Cover and cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 6–8 hours, until the veggies are tender and the flavors come together.
Step Seven – About 30 minutes before it’s done, stir in the acini de pepe pasta and let it cook until al dente.
Step Eight – Once the pasta is cooked, stir in the fresh spinach.
Step Nine – Let the spinach wilt in the hot soup for about 5 minutes, then give it one last stir and serve.
How to Serve
- One of the most common ways to serve the Italian wedding soup is hot and garnished with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.
- Serve a bowl alongside crusty garlic bread or dinner rolls for dipping and with a side of sautéed collard greens or roasted vegetables.
Featured Comment
“Made this tonight, didn’t alter the recipe at all and it was absolutely delicious! This recipe is a keeper.”
– Deni
Slow Cooker Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
- ½ lb. ground italian sausage, (or plain ground pork)
- ½ lb. ground beef
- 1 egg
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 Teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 Cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp. dried parsley
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
For the Soup
- 2 celery ribs, Diced
- 2 whole carrots, Peeled and Diced
- 1 yellow onion, Diced
- 3 cloves garlic, Minced
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
- ¾ Acini de pepe pasta
- 5 cups fresh spinach
- salt and pepper, to taste
- grated parmesan cheese, for garnish
Instructions
For the meatballs:
- In a mixing bowl, combine the ground pork, ground beef, egg, breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning, grated Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, dried parsley, salt, and black pepper. Mix until well combined.
- Shape the mixture into small 3/4 inch meatballs.
- Heat olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs to the pan and sear them until they are browned on all sides. The meatballs do not need to be fully cooked at this stage.
- Transfer the seared meatballs to a slow cooker.
For the soup:
- To the slow cooker, add the diced celery, diced carrots, diced onion, minced garlic, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Cook the soup on high for 4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours, until the flavors meld together and the vegetables are tender.
- About 30 minutes before the soup is done, add the Acini de pepe pasta to the slow cooker. Stir to ensure the pasta is evenly distributed in the soup. Continue cooking for the remaining 30 minutes or until the pasta is cooked al dente.
- When the soup is done, stir in the fresh spinach and allow it to wilt in the hot soup for about 5 minutes. Stir again to incorporate the spinach.
- Serve the Italian wedding soup hot, garnished with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.
Sarah’s Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Crockpot Soups
If you’re craving something warm and satisfying, these soups have you covered. Potato Cheese Soup and Dill Pickle Soup deliver creamy, flavorful comfort with a twist, while Nacho Soup and
When time’s short but you still want a homemade dinner, Busy Day Soup is the quick fix you’ll keep coming back to. Meatball Soup packs in protein and spice for a heartier meal. Try my from scratch slow cooker tomato soup, on a weeknight along with grilled cheese sandwiches.
When do you add meatballs? When Acini Pepe are added?
The full recipe is in the recipe card.
Step 4 of “For The Meatballs” section – you put the meatballs in the slow cooker, then go on to “For The Soup” and add veggies to metaballs in the cooker.
Made this tonight, didn’t alter the recipe at all and it was absolutely delicious! This recipe is a keeper.
Excellent!
I know homemade is always tastier, but could I use frozen Italian meatballs in this? Also, I had the same question as Jim…what measurement for the pasta, 3/4 of what?
Thanks!
Cup! Thank you. I will fix that.
Regarding the pasta- 3/4 cup, pound, package?
Thanks!