Swedish Meatballs with Cream Gravy

Huge thank you to Modern Proper for producing the most amazing Swedish Meatball recipe. The amount of care and work they put into their recipes are incredible. They also are so considerate in providing gluten-free alternatives. Definitely swing by their blog to check out their other recipes.

Onto meatballs! The Swedish kind. Do you ever find yourself going to Ikea just for soft serve and meatballs? Is that something I just do? The closest Ikea to me is about 45 mins away, double in traffic. Then an extra 20 minutes of circling the parking lot for a spot. Basically, it's a long ways away for freezer-burned meatballs. But look no further! Homemade scrumptiousness is here.

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INGREDIENTS:

Swedish Meatballs:

• 1 lb ground beef

• 1 lb ground pork

• 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, minced

• 1/2 tsp ground allspice

• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

• 3/4 cup yellow onion, grated (1 medium onion)

• 2 tsp salt

• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

• 4 cloves garlic, minced

• 3/4 cup panko*

• 2 eggs

• 2 tbsp olive oil

Cream Gravy

• 1/2 cup butter

• 1/2 cup flour

• 4 cups beef broth

• 1 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

• 1 tbsp lemon juice

• 1/4 tsp ground allspice

• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

• 1 cup heavy cream

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, mix the beef, pork, parsley, allspice, nutmeg, grated onion, salt, pepper, garlic, panko and eggs until combined.

2. Using a tablespoon or cookie scoop, measure out the meat mixture into roughly 35 (1.5 inch) balls.**

3. In a large pan, heat 2 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add ½ of the meatballs and cook until browned on all sides. This takes about 5 minutes. Set aside **

4. When all of the meatballs are browned, pour off any excess grease in the pan, into a heatproof vessel. Lower the heat to medium and add the butter to the pan. When the butter begins to bubble, sprinkle in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the beef broth to the pan a little at a time.***

5. Whisk the gravy until the broth is all incorporated. Add the salt, pepper, lemon juice, allspice and nutmeg. Whisk a few more times. Slowly add the cream.

6. Once the gravy begins to simmer****, add the meatballs back into the pan.

7. Simmer until the gravy has thicken up a bit and the meatballs are cooked all the way through*****, about 8-10 minutes.

8. Serve warm over mashed potatoes or egg noodles, alongside steamed veggies and lingonberry jam.

Cooking Notes:

*Gluten Free Version: if you want to keep this recipe gluten free, you can sub the breadcrumbs for a gluten-free version. To keep the gluten out of the gravy, you will want to reserve 1 cup of beef stock and mix it with ⅓ cup corn starch. Add it to the gravy at the end to thicken it up.

** I like to shape the meatballs and place them on a piece of parchment paper for easy clean up and less dishes. Then I use another piece of parchment to place the browned meatballs on, again, easy clean up, less dishes.

*** If you take your time adding the beef broth, your gravy will stay thick, taking less time overall.

**** Take care not to boil the cream. It might separate if you do. Keep it at a simmer until the meatballs are cooked all the way through.

***** The meatballs should reach an internal temperature of 165° F and no longer be pink on the inside.