Lower Fat Swedish Meatballs

I have a few preferences when it comes to Swedish Meatballs. I think that all of the flavor should be in the meatballs to begin with and the sauce should just be the drippings from the meatballs with a little broth and half and half. I think that the meatballs should be perfectly soft and smooth, so I use grated onion and a little half and half and then really knead the mixture to get a consistently smooth meatball. I think it also helps to chill the dough to let everything combine before cooking. A little espresso powder in there gives the meatballs more depth.

Ingredients (makes about 55 small meatballs):

2 slices bread (I’m using Healthy Life® white bread)

1/3 cup fat free half and half

1 pound lean ground beef (93% lean, 7% fat)

1 pound ground turkey breast

1 egg

1/3 cup fat free half and half

1 teaspoon beef base (like Better than Bouillon®)

1 teaspoon Worcestershire

1/3 cup grated onion

Fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional)

1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped fine (or 2 teaspoons dried)

½ teaspoon allspice

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

Cooking spray

1 cup beef broth

1/2 cup fat free half and half

Directions:

In a small bowl, tear the bread into tiny bits and add 1/3 cup fat free half and half. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the beef, turkey, egg, 1/3 fat free half and half, beef base, Worcestershire, grated onion, pepper, salt, espresso powder, parsley, allspice and nutmeg. Get in there with your hands and knead the meatball mixture for at least 4 minutes, until everything is completely soft, smooth and blended. You shouldn’t see any bits of beef or turkey or onion or bread—maybe just a few flecks of parsley here and there.

Chill the meatball mixture for 30 minutes.

Coat a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over low to medium-low heat. Working in batches and with dampened hands, roll the meatball mixture into golf ball size rounds and cook in the skillet about 5-7 minutes. Turn (I use two teaspoons to make sure they don’t break apart) and cook another 7 minutes. Your timing may be different than mine—break a meatball open to make sure it is cooked through before removing the batch from the skillet. Also, you may need to re-coat the skillet with cooking spray between batches, or you may want to add a few teaspoons of beef broth to the bottom of the skillet.

Remove each batch to a plate and continue until all the meatballs are done. Leaving the drippings in the pan, slow add the beef broth, scraping up the bits on the bottom of the skillet. Add in the last 1/2 cup of fat free half and half. Bring to a boil for 1 minute and add the meatballs back in. Cook, at a boil, for another 5 minutes, turning the meatballs into the sauce from time to time. Turn off the heat and serve hot.

Note: You may have too many meatballs to add them all back into the skillet. In that case, put the meatballs into a large serving dish and spoon the sauce over. Personally, I’m saving some of the un-sauced meatballs in the fridge to add to a Japanese style broth and vegetable soup later in the week.