Meatball and Tortellini Stew

Ingredients

• Meatballs:
• 1 pound ground beef
• ½ pound ground pork
• ½ tablespoon dried parsley
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• Soup:
• 3 quarts beef broth
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 3 small red potatoes, or more to taste, chopped
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped kale
• ½ cup trimmed green beans
• ¾ cup diced carrots
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1 pound frozen cheese tortellini

Step 1

Whisk together the beef, pork, chopped onion, and parsley in a bowl. Season generously with salt and a bit of black pepper, then shape the mixture into small meatballs.

Step 2

In a large pot, bring the beef broth to a boil and stir in the tomato sauce. Carefully add the meatballs to the bubbling broth. Turn the heat down to medium and let everything simmer gently for about an hour, occasionally skimming off any foam or fat that rises to the top.

Step 3

Toss in the potatoes, onion, kale, green beans, carrots, garlic, basil, and Italian seasoning. Let the stew continue to simmer until the veggies are tender—this should take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on your stove and how soft you like your veggies.

Step 4

Finally, stir in the frozen tortellini and cook just until they're heated through, about 10 minutes. Give everything a good stir and it’s ready to serve!