Swedish Cardamom Meatballs

San Marcos Sunshine's Note:

From a Food Network "Calling All Cooks" segment several years ago as made by Inglill Mutti with my alterations. These are about as Swedish as they get and my once a year MUST make recipe each Christmas season. This joins my Top Ten favorite recipes! Two tips: Cardamom can be expensive & hard to find. I finally found it at "Wild Oats" where bulk spices are sold by the ounce. I also use Tyler Florence's recipe for the accompanying Lingonberry Sauce, another hard to find item. I found 2 brands at Cost Plus World Market, and I also hear it's sold at Ikea if there's one near you.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 12

• 2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup milk (I use buttermilk)
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 3 eggs
• salt & pepper (to taste)
• 1 tablespoon ground cardamom
• 1 1/2 cups yellow onions, finely chopped (divided use)
• 1/2 cup butter (divided use)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 cups beef broth
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons gravy mix
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 -4 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 cup water

Optional Lingonberry sauce

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup lingonberry preserves or 1/4 cup lingonberry jam

Directions:

1. Soak bread crumbs in milk or buttermilk in large mixing bowl for 5 minutes. Add meat, eggs, salt & pepper, cardamom and 1 cup chopped onion. Mix well and roll into 1-1/2" meatballs. It helps to wet your hands as you roll.
2. Saute meatballs in 1/4 cup butter approximately 20 minutes. Remove browned meatballs and set aside.
3. In same skillet, saute 1/2 cup chopped onion with 1/4 cup butter, sugar and pepper unti caramelized, about 10 minumtes.
4. Add beef broth to onion & sugar mixture, scraping up any browned bits from the pan. Briefly cook over high heat.
5. Add cream, gravy maker and all other spices and bring to a simmer.
6. Make a slurry of the cornstarch & water and whisk the slurry into the mixture to thicken.
7. If you're going to serve the meatballs right away, add them to the sauce and simmer another 20-30 minutes. Otherwise, cool and refrigerate sauce & meatballs, either together or separately. (I do this separately, as I often freeze the meatballs without the sauce.).
8. Combine all ingredients for the lingonberry sauce and mix well.
9. Serve meatballs in a chafing dish with sauce and lingonberry sauce on the side as a dip.