Keto Meatballs

When I share a recipe, it’s a tried and true recipe. I wouldn’t dare write about something that wasn’t good. That just wouldn’t be fair to you. Trust me when I say that I’ve cooked some things off of Keto sites before, and ended up very irritated. For the simple reason that I know damn well that the person was just putting a recipe up, and they knew it wasn’t perfected. That’s the worst, especially when you’ve spent money on ingredients and used them already. Not saying this is the case with this recipe, but just wanted to put that out there.

With that being said, I haven’t really cooked anything out of this world lately, that’s new anyhow, to write you about. I’ve been sticking with a few things that we’ve come to love. Creamy Garlic Chicken Breasts (which will be posted this week), Fajita Chicken Salads, Sausage Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwiches (this one will be revisited this week), and Hamburger Steaks with Grilled Onions come to mind. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still cooking every single day and loving every minute of it. This housewife thing just might suit me after all. :)

These meatballs ended up good enough for a meal, and they were made even better by doing the Mashed “Potatoes” as the side. You can find the “Potatoes” link by clicking here. I found that the meatballs were very wet (for lack of a better word that one would like to read) while rolling them, they burned easily and fell apart while in the pan cooking, and the seasonings were a little weird for us. However, the seasonings may be what made the recipe as it is in the original, Swedish. You can find the original recipe by clicking here. The gravy was delicious though and helped the final taste, and the inclusion of sauteed onions within the meatball was a big flavor booster.

You may have better luck with the recipe, but I’m just not sure we will ever make these again. There are plenty of other “ball” type recipes out there in the wonderful online Keto recipe world. I’ve put my notes below in the recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients

4 tablespoons grass-fed butter divided
1 medium white onion finely copped
500 g ground beef
1/4 cup almond flour or crushed pork rinds (I used crushed pork rinds)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon allspice (Used this, but would omit it personally)
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (Used this, but would omit it personally)
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 egg lightly beaten
1/2 cup heavy cream divided into 1/4 cups
extra virgin olive oil for cooking
1-2 cups beef broth to taste (I used 2 cups, because I like lots of gravy)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2-1 teaspoon arrowroot powder or 1/4 tsp konjac (glucomannan) powder (This is used to thicken the gravy. I always use Xantham Gum in our kitchen and tend to eyeball it. Start with a 1/4 teaspoon, and let it simmer for a few minutes to see if it thickens up to how you like it.)

Directions:

Melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet or pan over medium heat. Add the onion, a pinch of salt, and sauté until it just begins to caramelize (6-8 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Add the ground meat, almond flour (or pork rinds), salt, spices, cooked onion, egg and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream to a large bowl. Mix everything thoroughly together using your hands and form into rounds (either 20 small-ish ones or 14 large).
Heat up a touch of olive oil in your skillet over medium heat and cook the meatballs until brown all over and cooked through. You’ll want to turn them around a few times so they cook evenly. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil while you make the sauce.
Add the remaining butter to the skillet and cook until it begins to brown (don’t clean the meatball remnants as they add the flavor to the sauce!). Add in the broth, remaining heavy cream and mustard to deglaze the pan. (Do the broth first to deglaze while scraping the bottom of the pan, and then add in the cream and mustard). Allow to simmer for a couple minutes and make a slurry out of your thickener of choice (i.e. mix it with a couple tablespoons of cold water prior to adding it to avoid clumping). Continue to simmer until the sauce just begins to thicken and taste for seasoning.
Add the meatballs back into the skillet, simmer for a couple more minutes and serve right away (think over a bed of mashed cauliflower!).