Swedish Meatballs

This was so so so hard for me not to get my little hands in and just do it! And dead painful to watch. I had to walk away. The sounds of mum, mum, mum from the kitchen had to be (mostly…) ignored with a response of FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS! This was for his Computer Science class. Me of all people, get it. Process. Follow the instructions. That is why they are there. Still…. that is my kitchen you are destroying! To be fair, he did clean it afterwards. But still very hard for me – my issue, not his! I had never eaten Swedish Meatballs and I wasn’t super keen….. Meatballs <sigh> But they turned out well and the kid did a good job. This was the recipe he was given:

Swedish Meatballs and Creamy Mash Potatoes Recipes are a form of algorithm which when followed allows us to cook great tasting food. Your challenge is to work out this recipe and cook it for your family (if they are vegetarian, you can substitute Textured Vegetable Protein or mashed chickpeas instead of minced meat). You will need to get 2 family members to give you feedback using the feedback form including photographs during preparation and for the final meal. 

Note: Cooking this meal involves good hygiene (washing your hands and keeping the kitchen clean), efficient preparation, being organised, presenting your food well and how good it taste. 

Swedish Meatballs Ingredients Meatballs: 1/3 cup breadcrumbs 1/2 cup (125ml) milk 35 ml cream (OPTIONAL — makes the meatballs more tender in the centre) 1 large egg 1 large clove minced garlic 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon EACH of black pepper and ground white pepper 1/4 teaspoon allspice 1/2 of an onion, finely chopped 750g ground beef (mince) (if you don’t eat beef, substitute another meat) 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley 1 tablespoon butter 2 teaspoons olive oil Gravy Sauce: 1/3 cup butter 1/4 cup plain flour 1 cup beef broth (or stock) 1 cup full cream 2 teaspoons regular soy sauce 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard Salt and pepper, to season 

Instructions 1. In a large bowl, mix the breadcrumbs together with the milk, cream (If using), egg, garlic, salt, 

peppers and spice. Allow the mixture to soak into the breadcrumbs for at least 10 minutes. 2. Once the milk is absorbed, add in the onion, meat and parsley. Mix well with your hands to 

combine. 3. Roll meat into about 24 small balls, or 16 larger balls. 4. Heat 1 tablespoons of butter and 2 teaspoons of oil in a pan on medium-high heat. Fry meatballs in batches of two so they don’t stew or simmer. Transfer to a warm plate and cover with foil. 5. Add the 1/3 cup butter to the juices in the pan to melt. Whisk in the flour until it dissolves and turns brown in colour. Pour in the broth (or stock), cream, soy sauce and Dijon. Bring to a 

simmer and season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix the sauce well to combine all of the flavours. 6. Continue to simmer until thickened. 

To serve: Place meatballs into the gravy in the pan and serve with creamy mashed potatoes. 

Creamy Mashed Potatoes Prep time: 15 mins. Cook time: 25 mins Total time: 40 mins 

Ingredients 1.5 kg (12 medium) waxy potatoes, peeled 

11⁄4 cups hot milk (use whole milk) 

200 grams butter at room temperature (not melted) 

11⁄2 tsp salt, or to taste 

1 Tbsp. fresh parsley or chives, finely chopped for garnish (optional) 

Instructions 1. Peel potatoes (cut potatoes in half if very large). If you want the smoothest potatoes possible, 

remove the little knots from the potatoes with a small spoon or the tip of a potatoes peeler. Place potatoes in a large pot and cover potatoes with cold water. 2. Bring to a boil and cook partially covered until easily pierced with a knife (boil 20-25 min 

depending on the size of your potatoes). 3. Drain well and transfer to the bowl. 4. Mash the potatoes with your hand masher. Slowly add the hot milk and mix it with the mash. 5. Add softened butter 1 tbsp. at a time and continue mashing until all the butter is incorporated. 6. Finally add 11⁄2 tsp salt, or add to taste. 7. Put in serving bowl and garnish. 

They were okay. I would, personally have done it a little different. But kid did okay. Funny, he came to me after 2.5 hours and said I DO NOT LIKE TO COOK. Welcome to my world kid.