The Gnocchi Meatball Soup

Make your meatballs

To a large bowl, add all your meatball ingredients: 1 lb ground turkey, 1 egg, 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 cup parm, 1/4 cup panko. Mix lightly so you don't compress the meat too much. Shape into small balls (similar to the size of your gnocchi).

Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium high heat and add enough oil to thinly cover the bottom of the pot. Once hot, add meatballs and brown, you aren't cooking the meatballs all the way through, just browning the outsides. Don't crowd your pot, leave room between each meatball, you'll probably need to do this in 2 - 3 batches.  Remove from pot and set aside.

Start your soup

To the same pot you cooked the meatballs in (don't wipe out the meatball bits or oil), add 1 tbsp oil and heat over medium heat. Add 1 diced onion, 3 diced celery sticks, and 1 bulb thinly sliced fennel. Cook down until onions are transluscent and everything is looking nice and soft (about 8 minutes).

Add 2 tbsp tomato paste and cook until it turns a deeper red (3ish minutes). Add 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, 2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp chili flakes and 4 cloves garlic. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Now to add your whole tomatoes, get your therapy in by crushing each one with your hands before adding to the pot. Add all the juices along with it.

Add 4 cups broth, add your meatballs back in, stir, and cover for about 15 minutes.

Finish your soup

After your soup has been cooking for 15 minutes, add your gnocchi. Cover and let cook for about 3 minutes (using your packages instructions as a general guide).

Serve it up with some fresh cream, grated parm, fresh herbs or whatever your heart desires.