Swedish Meatballs and Elbow Noodles

Being a giant meatball fan in general, it’s no surprise that I love Swedish meatballs. Though, what might be a surprise is that I never had Swedish meatballs growing up. In fact, I don’t think I had ever tried Swedish meatballs until I made them myself years ago. Yet, I consider Swedish meatballs a comfort food. It dawns on me that I’m not really hyping myself up on my Swedish meatball expertise and how you should trust me and make my insanely delicious Swedish meatball recipe. But I assure you, I have had Ikea Swedish meatballs since I started making my own Swedish meatballs- so there’s at least that I have to compare my recipe to. But also, I’ve seriously been working on this recipe for years, making little tweaks here and there, deciding if browning onions was worth the time, trying those onions in the meatballs, then in the sauce, then leaving them out all together to save time and see if I noticed. I didn’t! (Which is crazy to me because I put onions in everything.)

My goal was to get this dish into my 30 minute weeknight meal threshold, but even with cutting out the onion browning I would still say this is about 35-40 minutes if you are moving fast and don’t have a toddler yelling for you and a baby trying to climb your leg. If you have those things, it’s definitely 45 minutes.

But is it worth it? Heck yes. So good. So comforting. And added bonus - great heated up as leftovers!

Yield: 6 servings

Author: The Approachable Home

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Swedish Meatballs with Elbow Noodles

Delicious Swedish meatballs with elbow noodles tossed right into a creamy and flavorful sauce. Comfort food goodness.

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 45 Min

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces elbow macaroni
• 1/2 lb ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1/2 cup panko
• 2 eggs
• 2 TBL chopped parsley leaves (optional)
• 1 teas mustard powder
• 1 teas paprika
• 1/4 teas ground nutmeg
• 1 teas garlic powder
• 1 teas onion powder
• 1 teas kosher salt, + more to taste
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 TBL olive or avocado oil
• 3 TBL butter
• 3 TBL flour
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1/3 cup sour cream (I've used vegan sour cream and it works! I like Kite Hill brand)

Instructions:

1. 1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Start the rest of dinner. When pasta is done, drain and set aside. 
2. 2. In a large bowl combine ground beef, ground pork, panko, egg, parsley (if using - but you can totally skip it if you don't have any on hand), mustard powder, paprika, nutmeg, garlic powder, onion powder, and 1 teas salt. Mix well. I find that a fork works really well. 
3. 3. Heat oil in large pan. Form meatballs into equal sized small balls. I use the small cookie scoop. They are about the size of a ping pong ball. Don't make them too big or they will take forever to cook. 
4. 4. Once you've made all your meatballs - add them to the pan. In batches, if you need to, but I can fit all mine in my 12 inch T-Fal pan.
5. 5. Cook each side 2-3 minutes, flipping them carefully so they don't fall apart. I find a spatula and patience works best. They will cook about 10-12 minutes total. Transfer to a plate once they are done and set aside. 
6. 6. Melt butter in the same skillet. Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1-2 minutes. Gradually add in beef stock, whisking as you go. Cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Turn heat to low and whisk in sour cream until combined. 
7. 7. Add meatballs and pasta to pan. Gently toss / stir to coat and cook 2-5 minutes until everything is reheated. 

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