Swedish Meatballs

🧂 Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef

  (recommend a blend of 50/50 pork and beef)
• 2 slices white bread

  (hand torn, or use white breadcrumbs or panko)
• ½ cup milk
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
• ¼ cup white onion

  (grated is best - if using chopped onion, saute with a teaspoon of butter until translucent before adding to meatball mixture)
• 2 tablespoon fresh parsley

  (chopped)
• ¼ teaspoon each, salt & pepper

  (to taste)
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

  (extra virgin)
• 5 tablespoon butter

  (divided - 1 tablespoon & 4 tablespoon portions)
• 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

  (coarse ground)
• 2 tablespoon lingonberry jam

  (or fresh lingonberries)

Instructions

• 1 Place the ground beef (or both beef and pork) in a medium mixing bowl. Next,
  place white bread slices in a small bowl and cover with milk, then allow to soak
  briefly (about a minute).
• 2 Squeeze excess milk out of soaked bread - gently, don't squeeze all of the
  moisture out! Hand tear the bread slices into chunks, placing the pieces into
  the mixing bowl with the ground beef.
• 3 Add freshly grated nutmeg and crushed whole allspice. Grate the onion into the
  bowl. *I like to let any of the onion juice drip into the bowl, which is why I
  grate directly into my meatball mixture.
• 4 Add the chopped fresh parsley and remaining seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic
  powder) and the egg. Combine thoroughly.
• 5 Divide meat into 12 portions (for larger 2" meatballs) and roll in your palms
  until well rounded. Be sure to press together gently so that the meatballs hold
  up well during cooking. Place formed meatballs on a damp plate (to prevent
  sticking to the plate).
• 6 Fry the meatballs in a large skillet or frying pan. Bring the olive oil and the
  one tablespoon pat of butter to medium high heat and place the meatballs in the
  frying pan (leaving room between the meatballs).
• 7 Cook the meatballs, turning until all sides are browned and they are cooked
  completely through. Remove from the frying pan and transfer to a plate (cover
  with aluminum foil, or transfer to a bowl with a lid - keep the meatballs
  covered so they retain their moisture).
• 8 Reduce heat to medium and melt the remaining 4 tablespoon of butter and add the
  all-purpose flour, whisking the flour mixture while the liquids are added. Add
  the beef broth in small amounts, whisking into the pan drippings and flour
  mixture until all of the beef broth is added and the gravy is smooth.
• 9 Whisk in the heavy cream, then the coarse ground Dijon mustard and
  Worcestershire sauce. Add salt and pepper, if needed. Finally, add the
  lingonberry jam (or fresh lingonberries - cranberries have a similar taste and
  can work almost as well) and whisk to combine.
• 10 Return the cooked meatballs to the gravy in your frying pan or skillet, top with
  additional fresh chopped parsley (if desired) and bring the sauce to a simmer.
  Turn the meatballs while sauce simmers and thickens. Allow to simmer 2-3
  minutes. Serve immediately.

Nutrition Info