A favourite dish at our home, especially around the holidays, is Swedish Meatballs with Cream Sauce ( köttbullar med gräddsås). Served with lingonberry jam and boiled potatoes, it’s my wife’s comfort food.

This recipe was actually passed down from Claire’s great grandmother, so let’s go make some old school meatballs!

Part 1 – Swedish Meatballs  (köttbullar)                      

 

For this, you’ll need:

• 200g ground veal
• 200g ground pork
• 200g ground beef
• (in Quebec, it is called Trio, so 600g of Trio)
• 1 small/medium yellow onion
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup milk or cream(10%)
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/2 cup soda water
• mini potatoes (boil and serve later)

In a mixing bowl, add the bread crumbs

Add milk.

Add 1/2 cup of soda water.

This should foam up and look pretty cool!

Mix together and let it stand while you prepare the rest.

Finely grate the onion and add it to your mixing bowl.

Add the meat and salt

Grind and add the allspice. Again, grinding fresh gives better flavour and very strong aromas that make you more familiar with each spice. It’s kinda fun too!

Mix until blended.

While mixing add in the bread crumb mixture.

Finally, once that is mixed, add an egg. Mix well.

Now you are going to want to take this mixture and let it cool down in the fridge for about 30 minutes. It makes it easier to roll!

Take a pinch of meat and roll it into a golf ball sized meatball. Now, if I’m having a lot people over, I usually make them a bit smaller, so that everyone will be sure to get some.

Swedish Meatballs don’t have to be small. At the Pelikan in Stockholm the meatballs I got were almost baseball sized!

Chill the meatballs in the fridge to get them to firm up, makes them easier to cook!

Now, get a frying pan and add plenty of butter … mmm, butter

 

Time to cook those meatballs!

That smells AMAZING!

Don’t forget about those potatoes!

Get your potatoes boiling with a little dill added to the water.

Now that your meatballs are done, get them into a ceramic bowl or some such container and cover them to keep them warm while you make the cream sauce!

Part 2 – Cream Sauce (gräddsås)

You’ll need:

• 1 cup of stock (beef or chicken) or water
• 1/2 cup of heavy cream(35%)
• 2 tbsp flour

Pour the stock into the pan and stir it to get all the tasty little cooked bits loose. Simmer for a couple of minutes.

Mix the flour with the cream.

Pour the cream and flour mixture into the pan.

Stir the sauce until mixed well, then bring to a boil.

Let the sauce reduce until it has reached the desired thickness.

Pour this loveliness into a gravy boat or suitable container.

Plate the meatballs with lingonberry jam and potatoes.

Don’t forget that cream sauce!

Now, go grab some Aquavit!

 

A lovely holiday meal, courtesy of Sweden and The Joli Pantry!

Bon apetit!