Better than IKEA Swedish Meatballs

Oh, how I love Swedish meatballs! I think they're one of my all-time favorite foods and it turns out they're not as hard to make as I thought. I was afraid I was going to have to come up with all sorts of ways to cut the calories in them, but it turns out they're not as bad as you'd think. They take a bit of time to make, but if you make a bunch you can just freeze the extras.

Sometimes when I make them I serve them over whole wheat egg noodles, but last night I went with baked potatoes. It was a nice hearty meal for a cool fall evening. Alexander, however, only liked the meatballs. I think I have the only kid in the US that hates white potatoes. I also happened to have a jar of IKEA lingonberry preserves, you know, for authenticity.

The veggies du jour ended up being sauteed chard. I cooked them up the same way I make my kale, except with white wine vinegar, and it sure was tasty. I love my greens!

Svenska Kottbullar
Serves 6 at 270 calories each (4 meatballs per person)

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon peanut oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped fine
1 large egg, lightly beaten
8 ounces ground pork
8 ounces ground beef
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup chicken broth (1/2 teaspoon chicken base dissolved in 1/2 cup boiling water)
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups beef broth (2 teaspoons beef base dissolved in 2 cups boiling water)
1/2 cup light sour cream
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1. Preheat your oven to 350 and grease an 8x8 glass baking dish.
2. Combine the coconut milk, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, and spices in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Heat the 1 teaspoon of peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the onion until browned, around 5-10 minutes. Add to the breadcrumb mixture and allow to cool.
4. Add the egg, ground pork, and ground beef to the breadcrumb mixture and mix well. 
5. Heat the tablespoon of oil in the skillet over medium-high heat. Form the meat mixture into small balls (around 1 1/2 tablespoons per meatball) and carefully place in the hot oil. Cook until evenly brown and place in the baking dish. Do not worry if they are still pink in the middle because they're about to go into the oven.
6. When all of the meatballs are ready, pour the the chicken broth over them and cover the pan with foil. Bake for 40 minutes.
7. Remove the meatballs from the pan and strain the drippings into a saucepan. Whisk in the flour, followed by the beef broth. Bring to a boil and cook until thickened. Remove from the heat and whisk in the sour cream and allspice.
8. Add the meatballs back into the sauce and they're ready to eat!

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