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Tuesday 9th February 2021.

February 9, 2021

Good morning! And welcome to Tuesday. Today’s song challenge is “A song that makes you sad”.

Also of course today is Feisty Foodie day on TBS, Sara is with us in the last hour of the program and today is all about meat balls, in particular Swedish and Italian.

Swedish Meatballs

Meatballs

  • 2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed, torn into small pieces
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 1 small onion (brown, white or yellow), grated
  • 12 oz Ground Beef  (340g)
  • 12 oz Ground Pork (340g)
  • 2 egg yolks
  • ¼ tsp ground nutmeg , preferably freshly grated
  • ¼ tsp All Spice powder
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tbsp vegtable oil

 Cream Sauce (Gravy)

  • 40g / 3 tbsp butter , unsalted
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 2 cups beef broth/stock (salt reduced)
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream (or milk)
  • 1 tsp soy sauce

MAKE MEATBALLS

  1. In a small bowl, tear bread into small pieces, soak in milk and set aside.
  2. Grate onion using a standard box grater into a large bowl.
  3. Scrape onion and juices down into the bowl, add bread mixture and mix gently.
  4. Add remaining Meatball ingredients EXCEPT oil. Mix until well blended, but don’t overmix as meatballs will become tough.
  5. Using a tablespoon measure and measure out a heaped tablespoon (or use small ice cream scooper), dollop on work surface. Repeat with remaining mixture: 25 – 30 meatballs. Then roll into rounds.

 COOKING

  1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add half the meatballs and golden brown on all sides (but raw inside still) – about 5-6 Remove onto plate, then brown the remaining batch. Set aside on a plate.
  2. If there is lots of oil, pour off excess and discard. Lower heat to medium.

 GRAVY

  1. Add butter into skillet and melt. Add flour and stir in. Whisk for 1 minute until incorporated.
  2. While mixing, add about 1/4 of the beef broth – it will thicken quickly. Then gradually add remaining beef broth, stirring as you go. Add soy sauce and whisk until lump free.
  3. When the liquid is simmering, add meatball and juices pooled on plate.
  4. Turn up heat slightly to keep it at a rapid simmer. Cook for 8 – 10 minutes or until the liquid thickens into a thin gravy, stirring occasionally.
  5. Add cream and simmer until gravy reached desired consistency simmer (approx 2-3 minutes more) then remove from stove.
  6. Serve over mashed potato (or Cauliflower Mash for low carb). For a truly authentic experience, add a dollop of ligonberry jam on the side!

Italian Meatballs

Ingredients:

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 large onion, 1/4-inch dice

Salt

2 cloves garlic, grated or crushed

Pinch crushed red pepper

1/2 pound ground beef

1/2 pound ground veal

1/2 pound ground pork

2 large eggs

1 cup grated Parmigiano

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

1 cup breadcrumbs

1/2 cup water or milk

Instructions:

  1. Coat a large saute pan with olive oil, add the onions and bring to a medium-high heat. Season the onions generously with salt and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes. The onions should be very soft and aromatic but have no color. Add the garlic and the crushed red pepper and saute for another 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat and allow to cool.
  2. In a large bowl combine the meats, eggs, Parmigiano, parsley and bread crumbs. It works well to squish the mixture with your hands. Add the onion mixture and season generously with salt and blend with your hands. Add the water (or milk) slowly and blend gently with hands. The mixture should be quite wet. Test the seasoning of the mix by making a mini hamburger size patty and cooking it. The mixture should taste really good! If it doesn’t it is probably missing salt. Add more
  3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  4. Shape the meat into golf ball size balls. If you prefer them larger, make them larger!  Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides. Place them on a cookie sheet and bake them in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked all the way through. If using right away, add them to your big pot of marinara sauce. If not using right away, they can be frozen for later use. Serve with pasta and sauce or just eat them straight out of the pot!

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