RECIPE: Swedish Turkey Meatballs - low fat

maggie2094

18 years ago

I am not a huge fan of ground turkey but with DH recently learning he has high cholesterol and mine is borderline I am trying to use it more. I made this tonight and they were a big hit. I would not even think of this as low-fat since it is very rich. I used no fat beef broth and egg beaters instead of the egg.

SWEDISH TURKEY MEATBALLS WITH EGG NOODLES

For meatballs

4 slices firm white sandwich bread

1 medium onion

1 large egg

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 3/4 pounds lean ground turkey

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

3/4 pound cholesterol-free egg noodles such as No Yolks

1 small onion

2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

3 cups beef broth (24 fluid ounces)

3 tablespoons medium-dry Sherry

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon nonfat sour cream

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill leaves

Garnish:

chopped fresh dill leaves

Accompaniment:

1/2 cup lingonberry preserves or cranberry sauce

Make meatballs:

Into a blender tear 2 bread slices and grind into fine crumbs. Transfer crumbs to a large bowl. Make more bread crumbs in same manner and transfer to bowl. Finely chop enough onion to measure 3/4 cup and add to bread crumbs. In a small bowl whisk together egg, nutmeg, allspice, salt, and pepper and add to bread crumb mixture. Add turkey and with your hands mix mixture until just combined (do not overmix).

Form turkey mixture into 1 1/4-inch balls (about 80) and arrange on a tray. Meatballs may be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.

Preheat oven to 375F.

In a 12-inch non-stick skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and brown meatballs in 2 batches, turning them occasionally, about 4 minutes for each batch. With a slotted spoon transfer meatballs as browned to a shallow baking pan and reserve any drippings in skillet. Bake meatballs, tightly covered with foil, in middle of oven until just cooked through, about 25 minutes.

While meatballs are baking, fill a 6-quart kettle three fourths full with salted water and bring to a boil for noodles. Finely chop enough onion to measure 1/2 cup. In a small bowl whisk together cornstarch and 1/2 cup broth. To reserved drippings in skillet add Sherry and onion and simmer mixture, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until most of liquid is evaporated. Add remaining 2 1/2 cups broth and bring to a boil. Stir cornstarch mixture and whisk into broth mixture. Boil mixture, whisking, 1 minute and remove skillet from heat. Whisk in Worcestershire sauce, sour cream, and dill and keep sauce warm, covered, over low heat (do not let boil).

Cook noodles in boiling water until al dente. Drain noodles well in a colander and transfer to a large serving dish. Gently toss noodles with sauce and meatballs and garnish with dill. Put 1 tablespoon preserves or cranberry sauce on top of each serving.

Each serving, including preserves or cranberry sauce, about 426 calories and 10.8 grams fat (23% of calories from fat).

Serves 8 as a main course.

Gourmet

Less Is More

April 1998

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Comments (6)

craftyrn
18 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Thx Maggie--I can certainly use this recipe ! Did you use just a white meat ground turkey or the mixture of white & dark?
maggie2094
Original Author
18 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I used the mixture. I only just realized that they sell just ground breast meat. I will try it next time with the breast meat but am thinking will probably not get any drippings for the sauce so might season more. Enjoy - if I didn't make it myself I would never believe it was low-fat.
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swedish meatballs
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Comments (8)
Sharon is correct. It's the seasonings in the meatballs that make them different. The sauce is simply a beef broth/sour cream sauce, similar to a stroganoff sauce. I am sure it will be good with your meatballs, Deborah, but not exactly Swedish! LOL Or, if you want to try something other than that, this is good. Braised Meatballs in Mushroom Gravy 4 slices day old French bread, torn into pieces 1 cup milk 1 3/4 pounds ground beef 2 large eggs 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 teaspoon dried thyme All purpose flour for dusting 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced 1/2 c dry red wine 1/4 cup tomato paste 4 cups canned beef broth, divided Preheat oven to 350Â°F. Combine bread pieces and milk in medium bowl, pressing on bread to submerge; let stand until milk is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Squeeze out most of milk from bread; discard milk. Place bread in large bowl. Add ground beef, eggs, finely chopped onion, 1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley, salt, pepper, and thyme; mix well. Transfer meat mixture to processor. Process until well blended and mixture looks pasty. Form mixture into 1 3/4-inch-diameter meatballs (about 30). Divide meatballs between two 13x9x2-inch glass baking dishes. Bake meatballs 30 minutes. Set meatballs aside. Dust meatballs with flour; shake off excess. Melt butter with oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute mushrooms until golden, remove from pan, set aside. Working in batches, add meatballs to skillet and sautÃ© until brown on all sides, about 3 minutes. Return all meatballs to skillet. Whisk 1 c broth and tomato paste in small bowl to blend. Add mixture to meatballs and bring to boil. Continue boiling until thickened slightly, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and remaining broth, reduce heat to medium and simmer until flavors blend and gravy thickens, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer meatballs and gravy to bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and serve. Linda
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Comments (25)
Bob - there is no need to explain your variation on Swedish meatballs. Even if you used a pre-made meatball the sauces can vary greatly. One of the Scandinavian cooking sites I read lists a number of variances on the sauce. Some include a red wine, some sour cream and even one that is a sauce of sour cream and shredded gjetost. I'll pass on that one. And Beatrice Ojakangas a well known Finnish Minnesota author of several cookbooks lists many variations of the sauce adapted over the years. Just because someone has not heard of it does not mean it is not correct or wrong. I think your variation of the recipe used for a large group sounded good and one I will save for future use. The recipe for meatballs I use includes beef and pork, bread crumbs, eggs, milk, a couple Tbsp of red wine or sherry, nutmeg, allspice, garlic, white pepper and salt. The sauce is a cream based sauce, using cream or sour cream, beef broth, nutmeg, sometimes dill weed, sometimes sherry and sometime white wine. The Scandinavians (Swedes, Norwegians, Danes, Finns and Icelanders) were very creative with this recipe. They used what they had on hand. I believe they are all based on the same concept. A meatball with a sweeter taste and a creamy sauce that could include a variety of ingredients. It's kind of like meatloaf or chicken soup. Many variations - none are "correct". Different recipes work for different people. I bet your party was wonderful - not so sure about the banana suit!
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Comments (12)
Linda, This one is really good. ann Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Swedish Meatballs ================= c.1998, M.S. Milliken & S. Feniger, all rights reserved Meatballs: 2 slices white bread, without the crusts, torn into pieces 1/4 cup milk 3/4 pound ground beef 3/4 pound ground pork 1 small red onion, grated or very finely chopped 1 egg 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger Salt and freshly ground black pepper Butter and vegetable oil for frying meatballs Gravy: 2 cups beef stock 2 tablespoons flour 1/4 cup heavy cream Salt and freshly ground black pepper Fresh parsley, for garnish . In a small bowl, soak the bread in the milk until soft. In a large bowl, combine all the meatball ingredients except the butter and oil, and add the soaked bread. Mix thoroughly until smooth, it's best to use your hands for this. Shape into small, golf-ball size meatballs (by dipping your hands in cold water, the meatballs won't stick to your hands.) Heat butter and oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs, about 8 to 10 at a time, and gently brown on all sides, about 5 to 7 minutes. Shake the skillet now and then so meatballs stay round and brown evenly. Place them on a heated baking pan in a low oven to keep warm. To make gravy, deglaze the skillet with 1 cup of the stock, letting it simmer for 5 minutes while scraping the bottom of the skillet with a spatula. Strain the gravy into a clean saucepan and add the remaining 1 cup of stock. In a small bowl, mix the flour with 1/4 cup of cold water until smooth. Whisk flour mixture into warm gravy, and let simmer, whisking constantly to prevent lumps, until thickened slightly, about 3-5 minutes. Add the cream and season with salt and pepper. To serve, arrange the meatballs on a serving platter, pour hot gravy over them, and garnish with parsley. Serve with boiled new potatoes, lingonberry sauce, and lefse.
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Nothing to it! Take cheapest chicken pieces ([probably legs) OR any other meat you get for good price OR turkey/chicken/pork/beef or any other meat bones which you roast till golden in the oven OR any combination of vegetable OR any combination of any above.........cook it in a big pot till meat falls off the bone OR bones come apart easily OR vegetables are soft (or all above). Add some spices OR herbs (to your taste), a bit of salt (or not), cover with the lid and put out on the balcony to cool till fat (except for vegetable soup) is getting white and firm on the top of the soup. Take it back into kitchen, remove fat and get rid of it. Take out all items which are in the broth, sort it out, clean bones of meat, chopp the meat (if you have lots of meat you can use some for chicken/meat salad). Keep chopped meat/vegetables on plate and think of how much same kind of soup you will need. If you have too much, divide it into smaller pots and divide chopped items to make different soups. Make your smaller pots boil, and add some meat and rice to one, some meat and noodles to other, add some chopped raw potato to another pot and add some vegetables too. One with potato you can mix into cream soup without cream. Except for potato soup, all other soups freeze well so you can make different kinds of home made soups at the same time. Do not make a science out of it as you do not need any special recipes for no fat/no salt soup. You can look at any cook-book web site, find soup recipes - and there must be thousands. When you follow the recipe just skip what you don't want there. DO NOT USE SOYA SAUCE as it contains too much sodium/salt. Good luck.
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jessyf
18 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Maggie, I'm not a turkey fan either. But I do try to 'incorporate' it into our diet as a healthful alternative. Yours looks like an awesome recipe! I have a chinese meatloaf or dumpling filling that I use a turkey/chicken mix for it. Let me know if you want me to post it.

gag, turkey. Not my meat, but my family likes it. sigh.
maggie2094
Original Author
18 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Jessy,
I would love your Chinese meatloaf recipe if you get a chance. Thanks!
jessyf
18 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Here ya go. This is one of those recipes that have infinite variations, so I expect others to post! The original recipe calls for beef and pork, I use turkey and chicken. I make this both as a meatloaf and as won-ton filler, and of course they would make great meatballs.

Chinese Meatloaf

1 lb. Ground turkey
1 lb. Ground chicken
4 cups chopped Nappa cabbage
1/2 cup minced cilantro
1/4 cup minced ginger root
1/2 cup minced green onions
2 Tablespoons Asian chile sauce (I use the rooster sauce, or any hot sauce)
2 Tablespoons sesame oil (roasted is great!)
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 eggs, beaten

Hoisin sauce

Mix all ingredients except hoisin sauce.

Press mixture into three well oiled 2-cup loaf pans (I just use two regular loaf pans). Bake 350 degrees for about 1 hour or until done. Remove from oven and brush top and sides of loavs with hoisin.
jessyf
18 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Here is another low fat one. Sunset magazine first suggested making these to take camping, so the instructions are geared to travel. I just make 'em and eat 'em. I use very little oil because I hate frying...

Thai Turkey Sausage
From Sunset magazine

Perfect for campouts, you can cook up a big batch of patties at home and freeze. Heat them in camp for a great breakfast with eggs or hash-browns (Wilderness Cuisine author Carole Latimer uses sweet potatoes), tangerine juice, and papaya wedges. Notes: It's easiest to mince lemon grass in a food processor or minichopper. For best texture, mince the remaining ingredients with a knife.

1 pound ground turkey
1/4 pound green beans, ends and strings removed, minced
8 green onions, ends trimmed, minced
1 stalk (5 to 8 in.) fresh lemon grass, tough outer layers, stem end, and coarse leaves removed, minced
3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
2 to 3 teaspoons fresh serrano chilies (2 or 3), stemmed, seeded, and finely minced
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce (nuoc mam or nam pla)
1 large egg
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon sugar
About 2 tablespoons olive oil

1. At home: Mix turkey well with beans, onions, lemon grass, cilantro, chilies (lesser amount for mildest flavor), fish sauce, egg, cornstarch, and sugar. Divide into 16 equal portions and shape into 16 patties, each 1/2 inch thick.

2. Pour oil into a 10- to 12-inch nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add a few patties, without crowding. Cook until brown on each side and no longer pink in center (cut to test), about 7 minutes total. Remove as cooked and drain on paper towels; add more patties to pan.

3. When patties are cool, freeze in a single layer in a metal pan until hard, then seal airtight in plastic freezer bags. Transport in an insulated chest.

4. In camp: Place frozen patties in a 9- to 10-inch nonstick frying pan over low heat, cover, and cook until warm, 3 to 5 minutes; turn at least once.

RECIPE: Swedish Turkey Meatballs - low fat

Comments (6)

craftyrn

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RECIPE: Swedish Turkey Meatballs - low fat

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jessyf

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