Saturday, May 20, 2023

Mrs Humphris Swedish Meatballs

 Can a classsic meat based recipe be turned vegan. Yes. Traditional Swedish meatlballs lend themselves to this.They can now be easily made with Impossible or Beyond Meat.

I used mybest friend forever Deb's mother's recipe. Although Mrs. Humphris is Finnish she is known for her Swedish meatballs. I wondered if I could take that delicous take and turn it into something even vegans could enjoy.

I subbed in Beyond Meat for the real thing and Just Egg for egg.I kept Mrs Humphris or Janice's half cup of bread crumbs.

Spicing is very important in making Swedish meat balls. Janice's recipe calls for two tablespoons of grated onion. I felt this may be too strong and I wanted the nutmeg to stand out more. I subbed in onion powder . I did keep the nutmeg which is really what makes the  meatballs unique.

It was then mixing everything together. I used  four tablespoons of of Just Egg to get the right conistancy.

It took a lot of mashing and blending to get all the ingredients moist and t the same time solid enough to form balls. Yet it was pretty easy to create meatballs.
It was then airfrying them for an easier cook. Janice bakes her in a 350 degree Farenheit oven. I wanted something quicker. I looked on line at various Beyond Meat sites. I found a good temp and time. it was five minutes at 400 degrees Farenheit.It produced the perfect meat ball,cripsy crunchy exterior with a soft tender and juicy inside. 
The gravy was amother matter.I wanted tomakeone that's perfect for the meat balls. I took from a variety of different recipes and added my own twists My one mistake was this:
I saw the ads for this, Better Than Bouillon on TV.I thought can I sub it instead of veggie broth. However it was super salty. The recipe called for two cups of veggie broth, three tablespoons of butter and flour. The butter and flour are cooked together to form a roux., I then added the entire jar of the bouilion. It was pure salt. I had to add more butter and double the amount of almond milk. Even an added glug of maple syrup couldn;t temper the saltniness. I also threw in about five tablespoons of nutmeg for that Swedish flavor.

The sauce looks creamy and amazing but it took a lot of extra almond milk and Melt plant butter to temper the intense salinity. with the meatballs and egg noodles added , it turned out to be not that bad.

I love Mrs Humphris' Swedish meatballs. I plan on making them again but with a milder gravy or just plain. They and the egg noodles were perfect, a wonderful dinner for a chill May night.

Thank you , Janice and Deb for giving me this great recipe. I plan on making this many more times.It's the perfect meal with the perfect flavor.



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