Baked Swedish Meatballs

My Mother made wonderful Swedish Meatballs… she lost the recipe in their move … so we had to re-create it from memory…

I loved them but my only complaint was they were a bit greasy for me…. so I went about changing the recipe to keep the flavors and cut the grease…

TIPS

These are rich.. but that’s what makes them so yummy… I wouldn’t recommend that you skimp on some of the ingredients… like the heavy cream… there isn’t much in the mix.. but it makes a huge difference.

Another important ingredient is sour cream.. it adds a little tang to the sauce… it nicely counter balances the rich meatballs... I use the real deal… the lower fat sour cream will give it a different taste.. but if you like it … by all means try it.

I use white bread or sometimes Italian bread.. I remove the crusts.  If the bread is a day or two old.. all the better.

I used my mini chopper to chop the onion really fine.. it’s quick and easy and does a great job.

If you don’t have allspice.. in this recipe you can substitute a sprinkle (heavy handed) of cinnamon and a very light sprinkle of ground cloves.. I wouldn’t add more nutmeg since it’s already in the recipe.

I use my cookie scoop to scoop out the meat.. then I roll them into balls.. this way they are all even size and a good size for a meal. 

Many recipes fry the meatballs first.. I don’t… depending on the grease that comes out of the meatballs… I use that from my baking pan.. if I don’t have enough or any grease… I make up the difference with butter when making the sauce.

Serve these with noodles… or make them smaller and serve them as a cocktail meatball for a party.

Recipe:  Baked Swedish Meatballs

All you need:

For the Meatballs:

¾ pound lean ground beef

½ pound ground pork

1 egg

3 slices white bread, crusts removed and torn into pieces

½ cup heavy cream

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoons butter

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon allspice *See TIPS

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

Butter flavor cooking oil spray

For the Sauce:

2 tablespoons pan drippings or butter *See TIPS

3 tablespoons flour

2 cups beef broth

1 teaspoon instant coffee

Sprinkle of salt and pepper

Sprinkle of nutmeg

½ cup sour cream

All you need to do:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Line a baking pan with non-stick foil and spray it with butter flavor cooking oil spray.

Put the bread in a small bowl and pour the heavy cream over it.  Set it aside.  Occasionally push the bread down into the heavy cream so it absorbs the cream.

In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook until soft and starting to brown… don’t let them get really dark.. just a little brown.. if they start browning too much too fast.. just lower the heat a little.  Set them aside to cool.

In a large bowl, combine the beef, pork, egg, soaked bread, cooked onion, nutmeg, ginger and allspice.  Mix well with your hands.. it will be very wet and sticky.  Roll into small balls (*See TIPS) and place on the prepared baking pan.

Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Remove from the oven and reduce the heat to 350 degrees.  During the last 10 minutes of baking, make the sauce.

To make the Sauce:

In a medium sauce pan, heat the pan drippings and/or butter.  Add the flour and stir to combine.. cook for a minute to cook off the flour taste. 

Slowly add the beef broth, whisking it in as you pour… whisk until smooth.  Add the instant coffee, salt, pepper and nutmeg.  

Remove from the heat and add the sour cream, whisking until completely incorporated and sauce is smooth.

Place the meatballs in a baking dish, then pour the sauce over them so they are covered (some may poke out of the sauce.. just make sure that you spoon sauce over them to wet them with the sauce.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 30-40 minutes until the sauce is bubbly.

Serve over buttered noodles.