I finally feel vindicated for the insanely high number of food magazines to which I subscribe. I read an article last month about a chef who makes the best meatballs. I wish I could tell you which chef, but if you saw my magazine collection from this month alone, you would understand. Anyway, this chef accredited his incredibly tender and perfect meatballs to powdered gelatin. Since I always have some gelatin in my pantry for my next small batch homemade marshmallows fix, I was immediately interested. I was also convinced by Emily that making meatballs in the food processor was another key to making them amazingly tender. With these two bits of information, I set out to make copycat Swedish meatballs for two.
Since I cook for two, I knew we would be scaling this down. The only problem is, I couldn’t decide how many meatballs serve two people. Lately, we’ve been having days where we work through lunch and show up to the dinner table absolutely starving. So, 5-6 meatballs on a hungry day, maybe 3-4 meatballs with leftovers for lunch on a regular day. As you can see in my skillet, this recipe makes 13 small meatballs. So, yes, these meatballs, with the addition of powdered gelatin and a quick stint in the food processor are incredible. Just when I thought meatballs couldn’t get any better, we bring the sour cream sauce to the party. It’s a skillet dinner for two that I just can’t stop thinking about. Can we talk a little more about Vital Proteins (the brand of powdered gelatin I used today)? Last year, I scored a sample of Vital Proteins collagen peptides in a swag bag at a conference, took it home, and whirred it into a cup of coffee (like all my cool blogging friends taught me to do), and I was instantly hooked. It’s totally tasteless–if anything, it adds a bit of froth and foam to your coffee. I kept up my habit of adding collagen to my coffee and tea because I loved getting a hit of protein first thing in the morning. I have a noticeable boost of energy if I put a scoop into my morning beverage. Then, over the past few months (since life is crazy), I ran out of collagen and never replaced my jar. I don’t really think it’s a coincidence that the joints in my hand starting aching again (see my post about A Week in the Life of a Food Blogger for the background story). I started using the collagen again about 3 weeks ago, and my hand feels much better. I’ve never really been someone to take supplements, but I am someone that is willing to jump on any bandwagon in the name of health, happiness, or more energy. I’ve always been happy to add the latest superfood to my diet, whether it’s a green smoothie, chia seeds, vegan recipes, coconut oil, turmeric, or anything else. However, I usually fall off of the bandwagon rather quickly. But, collagen is one habit that I will continue probably for the rest of my life. I’m currently on a mission to get my mom to try it, too.
When Vital Proteins reached out to me, I was insanely excited to find out they had expanded their product line to include bone broth powders, grass-fed gelatin powders, and even marine collagen. (As you know, I’m a big fan of grass-fed products for my family). I used a scoop of the collagen peptides in my Omega 3 Energy Bites for Kids last week (which Camille loved), and Camille definitely loved these meatballs with the grass-fed gelatin. If she knew that homemade fruit snacks with grass-fed gelatin existed in this world, she would beg me to make them. (For the record, she’s never had a fruit snack and I’m trying to hold off as.long.as.possible. But when she discovers them, you can bet I’ll be hocking a homemade version on this site). Ok, that was a lot of words about meatballs, cooking for two, dietary supplements, and cooking for kids. I’m going to leave you with my recipe for Copycat Swedish Meatballs for Two now, I promise.
The gelatin is optional, but it really makes for incredibly tender meatballs.
Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor
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