Meatball Soup and Homemade Bread

Last night my mother-in-law made Meatball Soup which was great for a cold day.  I decided to try my hand at a bread recipe I'd found on a fellow blogger's page.

I've got some pictures of our progress on the meal.

Here are the meatballs

The beginning of the bread

I've not made bread in soooo long, but this recipe sounded so simple.  Now, I wonder why I don't try my hand at it more often.

Resting in Peace

Roll 'em up, roll 'em up

Throw 'em in the pan

They're not the most beautiful loaves, but I like them just the same...rustic bread : )

Meatball Soup
4 cups water, slightly salted
1 medium onion, rough chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
4 stalks of celery, diced
1 lb. ground meat (we used pork)
3 Tbsp. medium grain white rice
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce
2 tsp. Thyme
Salt and Black Pepper to taste
1 Tbsp. Sherry Vinegar
1 Bay leaf
Handful of Italian Parsley, rough chopped for garnish

Simmer onion, celery, and carrots until vegetables are tender.  Add Bay leaf.  While vegetables are simmering, roll meatballs.  Be sure to season the ground meat, to taste, with salt & pepper, and Thyme.  Add the eggs and rice to the meat mixture and form into balls.  Add these to the soup along with tomatoes and sauce.  Continue to simmer until meat is cooked through and rice is tender.  Add sherry vinegar and additional seasoning to adjust taste, approximately 15 minutes.  Garnish with parsley and serve with warm bread.  You may need to adjust water, seasonings, etc. as we did the soup off the cuff and I'm only trying to recall what exactly went in.  *Feel free to use stock instead of water, season the meat with Worcestershire, etc.  It's soup so just about anything goes.

I'm sharing in Foodie Friday over @ Designs by Gollum