Swedish Meatballs and Gravy

These are delicious! SO delicious! And, if you don't manage to eat them all, they freeze well, too!
My nana's family was from Sweden and growing up we had Swedish meatballs on special occasions, like New Years Eve.  We all devoured them, and I discovered that, with a bit of tweaking to the recipe, you can whip them up in no time and bake them in the oven!   However, my BIG goal was to re-create the gravy, because that together with the meatballs is simply divine!  So, here you have the meatball recipe, the gravy recipe and a cranberry sauce recipe.  Mmmm... I've finally remembered to take a picture of the beautiful round meatballs from the oven, and I will include a picture of how the pan-fried ones end up looking (aka, a little flattened, but the taste is still fabulous).
Enjoy!!!

This is one of our absolute favorite meals.  We make it most holidays, and other times when we just want something a little extra special for dinner. 

Swedish Meatballs and Gravy

Makes ~ 24-30 meatballs
 

Mix:

1 lb. ground beef (low-fat)

½ finely chopped onion

¼ tsp dry mustard

¾ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1 egg

½ cup cream

½ cup gluten-free flour (a mix works well, or even just ½ cup brown rice flour works in this recipe) OR gluten free breadcrumbs

 

Roll into small meatballs. 

 

Bake at 375F ~15-20 minutes, until cooked through.

OR

Pan-fry 10-15 minutes in 2-3 Tbsp. oil. (I find they never stay round this way, but they still taste great) 

They may look silly pan-fried( aka, they won't stay round) - but the taste will still be just as delicious!

 

Gravy

 

Melt 3 Tbsp. butter in saucepan

Add the following (in no particular order):

1 3/4 cups milk or light cream (I usually use 2% lactose-free milk)

1 cup beef broth (can be made from bouillon cube + water – check bouillon for gluten!)

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

¼ tsp paprika

¼ tsp parsley

drippings and/or 1 Swedish meatball (broken-up into small pieces) from meatball pan

 

Cook, stirring constantly, until gravy comes to a boil. 

 

Mix together thoroughly & then add to saucepan:

1/4 cup milk

2-3Tbsp cornstarch (2 Tbsp for thinner gravy (I usually use 2 Tbsp), up to 3 Tbsp for thicker gravy)

 

Bring back to a boil, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes until gravy thickens. 

 

Serve over meatballs.

 

This meal is nice with oven-roasted french fries, roasted potatoes or boiled potatoes.  And, if possible, serve with lingonberry jam (IKEA sells it) meant to go w/ Swedish meatballs, but it works great with cranberry sauce as well!

 

Cranberry Sauce

 

Put in small pot over medium heat until boiling and thickened (~10 minutes):

½ bag cranberries

½ cup water OR ¼ cup water & ¼ cup orange juice

½ cup sugar

1 tsp grated orange rind (optional)