Swedish Meatballs Over Buttered Egg Noodles

Last night, I made Swedish meatballs over buttered noodles, and I’m pretty sure it was the best dish I have ever made. It was AMAAAAZING! This will easily feed a family of 6, especially when paired with a salad.

Ingredients and items you will need:

• 2 lbs ground beef (or 1 lb ground pork & 1 lb ground beef) – I chose to use 2 lbs grass-fed ground beef
• 1 lb bag of egg noodles
• 5 slices bread (I used homemade white bread)
• 2/3 cup milk (I used organic whole milk)
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 qt (32 oz) beef stock
• 3/4 cup sour cream (regular – do not use lowfat)
• 4 large (or 8 small) cloves garlic
• 2 sticks of unsalted butter (Use real butter – do not use margarine! I used Kerry Gold grass-fed butter)
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 2 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 2 Tbsp dried or fresh chopped parsley
• 1 large frying pan with lid
• 1 large pot
• food processor
• 1 grater

1. Remove crusts from bread slices and tear bread into small pieces. Put in large bowl and cover with the milk. Let bread soak up milk for half an hour.
2. While bread is soaking, use the large hole side of a grater to grate the garlic cloves. Then melt 2 Tbsp butter in a large frying pan and sauté the garlic over medium heat until it just starts to turn golden. Remove pan from burner and let garlic cool.
3. After bread has soaked for half an hour, put the milk-soaked bread in a food processor until pulverized.
4. Put pulverized bread back in bowl. Add the sautéed garlic, kosher salt, black pepper, and nutmeg. Stir together. Then add the ground meat. Use clean hands to mix well.
5. Shape meat mixture into balls about the size of golf balls. Set aside on large cookie sheet or plates.
6. Melt 6 Tspb butter in the frying pan you used to sauté the garlic earlier. Stir butter until it starts to get frothy. Then add meatballs, being careful not to break them apart. You may have to cook the meatballs in two batches. Brown the meatballs on each side over medium heat. Do not cook them all the way through – they will cook more in the sauce later. Just brown them on the outside. When brown, remove meatballs from pan and set aside on cookie sheet or plates. 
7. Slowly add the flour to the butter left in the pan while stirring. Continue to stir until flour and butter are blended and the roux (the butter flour mixture) has turned light brown. Add the sea salt and stir. Slowly add the beef stock to the roux bit by bit, stirring well each time you add stock. Stir quickly or whisk until sauce is smooth.
8. Add the meatballs to the pan of sauce, lower heat to low, and cover pan with lid. Cook meatballs in sauce for 10 mins, stirring once halfway through.
9. Put large pot of water on to boil and cook egg noodles according to directions on package.
10. After meatballs have cooked 10 mins, turn off burner and stir sour cream into pan of sauce and meatballs. Stir until sour cream is completely blended with sauce.
11. After egg noodles have cooked, turn off burner, drain noodles, and put noodles back in pot. Add 4 Tbsp butter to noodles and stir until butter has melted. Add 2 Tbsp dried or fresh chopped parsley and toss with noodles.
12. Put a pile of noodles on each plate, top with meatballs, then top with a generous amount of sauce.
13. Enjoy listening to your family tell you over and over that you are an amazing cook!

Update:  A friend of mine was interested in making a gluten-free version of this meal. For anyone on a gluten-free diet, gluten-free egg noodles can be found next to the other pastas in the pasta aisle of your local grocery store. Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose flour can be found on the baking aisle. Gluten is also in most commercially produced beef stock, but there is a terrific beef stock recipe on this gluten-free website. It can be made in advance. If anyone knows of any other ingredients in this recipe that contain gluten, please let me know.