Healthier Swedish Meatballs

Here is my typical "I am craving Ikea cafeteria food" meal....minus the huge crowds and flat-packed furniture (and the horse meat!).

These are lightened up by using a method I discovered a while ago in Cooking Light for cream gravies...a cream cheese and flour roux mixed with milk and broth. To me, the flavor and the texture is perfection...minus all the calories and fat. This is one of my favorite healthified tricks, I use it here, also.

I stuck to beef for the meatballs, but feel free to sub in turkey if you want. And me, being a pathetic creature of habit, always serves these with whole wheat egg noodles (and cooked carrots and cranberry sauce...always). Feel free to serve them with rice or mashed potatoes if that is your thing.

Swedish Meatballs
Makes 6 Servings
230 cals / 6g fat / 20g carbs / 22g protein

1 lb lean ground beef (96/4)
1 egg
1/2 small onion (1/3 cup minced)
1-2 stalks celery (1/4 cup minced)
2 cloves garlic
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 cups beef broth
1 TB fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
1 cup skim milk
3 TB flour
4 TB reduced fat cream cheese

1. Mince celery, onions, and garlic. Combine with ground beef, egg, bread crumbs, allspice, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Roll into small balls, 1-2 TB in size....you should end up with 28-30 meatballs.

2. Heat a large pan over medium heat and coat pan with cooking spray. Cook meatballs on all sides until cooked through and brown on all sides, about 10-15 minutes.

3. While meatballs are cooking, chop parsley and set aside. Whisk cream cheese, flour, and milk until smooth.

4. Once meatballs are done, remove from pan and increase heat to medium high. Add beef broth and parsley to pan, stirring up any browned bits. Bring to a boil and stir in milk mixture, whisking until smooth. Continue to simmer until sauce thickens slightly, about 5-10 minutes, then return meatballs to the sauce and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Garnish with more parsley, if you want.