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Swedish meatballs
For many, Swedish meatballs spark visions of bright Ikea lights, hangovers, or blue and yellow painted faces at the Australian open. In reality, a plate of creamy meatballs, mashed potato and lingonberry jam is a reminder of what a home cooked meal is – unpretentious, comforting, and unashamedly rich and heavy.
So, how does something so seemingly naughty allowed in the Paleo diet? Well, given its high protein and fat content - a good thing when it comes to Paleo eating - this dish can easily be added to your weekly menu. All you have to do is swap a few ingredients, adjust the cooking method slightly and you end up with a very wholesome, Paleo friendly meal.
The recipe below can be made with or without dairy, although cream and butter addition keeps this recipe closer to the traditional version. Unlike other dairy products, cream and butter are actually better choices as their fattier content means less lactose, which is one of the reasons dairy is removed in a very strict Paleo diet. Plus butter, from grass-fed cows especially, is an excellent source of Vitamin K2 which assists with blood clotting, protects us from heart disease, ensures healthy skin, strong bones and healthy brain - to name a few benefits. Ghee can be used instead of butter, as it’s a pure animal fat with most traces of dairy lactose and proteins removed during the making process.
Herb-Infused Meatballs With Garlic Cauliflower & Pumpkin Mash
Please note that step number 5 is slightly different for a non-dairy version of the sauce and will be noted at the end of the recipe.
Swedish meatballs with cranberry jam and cauliflower sweet potato mash
For meatballs300gm grass-fed beef mince (because grass-fed meat contains a healthier ratio of Omega-6/3s fatty acids)
300gm free-range pork mince
1 brown onion, finely diced
2/3 tsp ground Allspice
A pinch of ground nutmeg
1 tsp sea salt
A pinch of ground black pepper
1 egg, plus 1 extra egg yolk
2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter which is essentially dairy free) or olive oil for cooking
For meatballs sauce
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 1/2 cups beef stock (go for salt reduced version where possible and add your own seasoning)
2/3 cup heavy pouring cream
1 tsp Tapioca flour dissolved in 2 tbsp of warm water
1/2 tsp butter
For meatballs sauce without dairy1/2 cup dry white wine
2 1/2 cups beef stock
1 tsp ghee
1 tsp Tapioca flour dissolved in 2 tbsp of warm water
1 egg yolk (which we use as an emulsifier to thicken the sauce)
For cauliflower mash2/3 head of cauliflower, core removed, roughly chopped
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 tsp Dijon mustard or dry mustard
2 tbsp olive oil or 1 tbsp ghee or butter
1 tsp sea salt
Cranberry jam1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup apple sauce
A pinch of Allspice
10 Mouth-watering Meatballs Recipes
Instructions
1. Prepare cranberry jam ahead of time. Combine all ingredients and bring to boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes until reduced and caramelized. This recipe will make 1 – 1 ½ cups, which can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for a few weeks. It’s yummy with roast pork or duck or as a topping on yogurt or coconut cream.
2. Sautee onion in 1 teaspoon of ghee or 1 tablespoon of olive or macadamia oil until soft and translucent. Combine with minced meat, spices, salt, pepper and eggs. Make sure to knead the mixture for a few minutes to work the protein in the meat, which will bind everything together. Wet your hands and roll the meat mixture into balls the size of a walnut in its shell.
3. Pre-heat oven to 150C. At the same time, place sweet potatoes in a medium saucepan with water and bring to boil. Cook for 5 minutes before adding cauliflower.
4. While potatoes are cooking, start frying the meatballs. Heat a large frying pan, lightly coated with ghee or macadamia oil (don’t use olive oil for frying as it has a very low smoking point and will burn and go rancid). Brown meatballs, in batches if needed to avoid over-crowding, on high-medium heat for 3 minutes on each side. Remove to an oven-proof dish and place in the oven to keep cooking at 150C for a further 10 minutes.
5. Pour white wine to deglaze the pan we fried the meatballs in. Keeping the heat on high let it bubble away for a couple of minutes before adding the beef stock (at this stage you can probably add cauliflower to the boiling sweet potatoes). Bring stock and wine back to boil and then turn the heat down to simmer. Dissolve tapioca flour in a little warm water and add to the broth. Simmer and stir for a minute, then add cream, butter and stir to finish the thickening process. Take meatballs out of the oven and add back to the sauce. Set aside while you prepare the mash.
6. Strain cauliflower and sweet potatoes reserving ½ cup of liquid. Place in a food processor or a blender, add mustard, butter, ghee or oil, sea salt and pepper and process until smooth. You can use a hand-held blender instead.
7. Serve meatballs and sauce poured over mash with a side of cranberry jam.
Alternative step 5: Pour white wine to deglaze the pan we fried the meatballs in. Keeping the heat on high let it bubble away for a couple of minutes before adding the beef stock (at this stage you can probably add cauliflower to the boiling sweet potatoes). Bring to boil and then turn the heat down to simmer. Pour ½ cup of the sauce into a jug or a cup. Whisk the egg yolk in a separate bowl until smooth and glossy. Gradually add ½ cup of the hot sauce while whisking. This will temper the yolk and bring it to warmer temperature, thus preventing curdling when we add the mix to the rest of the cooking sauce. Add the egg yolk mixture back to the pan. Dissolve tapioca flour in a little warm water and add to the broth. Simmer and stir until thickened. Set aside while you prepare the mash.
To read more about the Paleo diet or to get inspired to cook Paleo friendly food, check out Irena’s website Eat Drink PaleoVIDEO: Sometimes in the quest to lose weight the easiest solutions can be overlooked, but taking wheat out of your diet can help you shed almost five kilos in two weeks:
