Chow Down to Euovision 2013 - Sweden

This year's Eurovision host country Sweden is the first cab off the rank in the final of Chow Down to Eurovision 2013. As hosts Sweden automatically qualifies for the final along with Italy, Spain, France, Germany and the United Kingdom.
The remaining 20 spots in the final come down to your votes and will be announced tomorrow.

While I had a dish in my head to finish our journey to Malmö with I kept seeing requests for meatballs recipes on twitter from potential Eurovision party hosts. I was resisting doing meatballs as I didn't think I'd be able to get my hands on enough horsemeat, but I always like to give the Saucers what they want.

The twist is these are based on my memory of Swedish meatballs from my childhood when the grown ups had parties. I remember they came frozen in a large box of about a thousand dark brown pebbles that looked like something decorative from a garden shop, they tasted of  a shipload of pepper and had a distinctive bounce to them.

This version doesn't  have quite as much bounce and with the brown onion glaze will disappear quickly. I've also included in this post a Swedish cocktail to get you in the spirit, or possibly hospitalised if you play the Eurovision drinking game!

I had a very hard time picking the past Eurovision taster as Sweden has a smorgasbord of brilliant offerings so I thought I'd stick to one most personal.

There is something magical in the finding Eurovision in a non Eurovision setting whether it be Loreen's Euphoria in the final of My Kitchen Rules, the music in a shopping centre or an intimate stand up comedy routine with a Eurovision theme.

My most thrilling surprise Eurovision was during a 6am body pump class, yes not only awake at that time but out of the house and exercising! Around this same time I was body jam instructing so I was no stranger to the inside of a gym, I just didn't look it.

I was getting ready to lift the weights while day dreaming about being back in bed when I hear "never gonna run away" (what, no way) "I'm not gonna hide"(OMG can it really be!!!) "I know, just what I feel inside" and yes it was Carola from 2006 serenading the class with Invincible! It was like I was back in Athens.

The instructor was very accommodating as I sang at the top of my lungs and tried to wave the bar like a flag with 10kg weights on each end. Just like the backing singer in the semi final there may have been a well covered stumble that had the potential of doing one's self a mischief. (2.45 in the video)

Swedish meatballs with Onion Gravy
Ingredients

• 500g mince (lamb, beef, pork, or combination)
• 250g sausage mince
• 11/2 cups bread or a bread roll
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 brown onions, peeled quartered
• 3 spring onions roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp. pepper
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 2 brown onions peeled finely sliced
• Knob of butter
• 2 cups beef stock
• 2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp. corn flour
• Olive oil

Method

• In a food processer add 2 brown onions quartered, bread, milk, spring onions, garlic peeled, and processer for 30secs till chopped
• Add the meat, pepper, salt, process till combined, add more milk if needed
• Roll into approx. 25g balls or to the size you prefer
• Cook in batches in a frypan on medium heat with a good splash of olive oil
• Move the frypan in a circular motion to move the balls around so that all sides brown
• Cook for about 10 minutes till cooked through, alternatively brown in the frypan and finish in the oven for about 15-20 minutes on 180°C

• To make the glaze sweat down the onions with  butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, they should be transparent rather than brown
• Add the stock and vinegar
• Boil to reduce slightly
• To thicken make the cornflour into a paste as directed and stir through
• Serve hot with toothpicks, as a main with mash potato or in a butter bread roll

 

Swedish Polar Bear Cocktail
Ingredient

• 30ml vodka (I have reduced the vodka to 1 shot instead of 2 as it is a long night)
• 30ml blue Curacao
• Ice
• Lemonade

Method

• Add all ingredient to a glass
• If you are playing the drinking game you could get an advantage by just having lemonade and blue food colour, it is cheating but could avoid a messy time!
• And always drink responsibly, no one wants blue clean up. 

Robin Stjernberg will have the home crowd support with his song You, can Sweden win 2 in a row?

Lycka till!