Swedish Meatball Pasta Bake

In this Swedish meatball pasta bake, ‘köttbullar’, creamy gravy and bowtie noodles come together in a rich, creamy comfort dish.

Preparation Details

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 40 mins

Total Time: 1 hr

Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 pound 85% lean ground beef
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 ounces dried bowtie pasta
• 2 1/2 cups lower sodium beef broth
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 4 teaspoons W orcestershire sauce
• 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
• lemon wedges for serving

Steps

1. Gather all ingredients. Grease a 7×11-inch baking dish.
2. Lightly beat egg in a medium bowl. Stir in bread crumbs, onion, milk, salt, nutmeg, allspice, and cayenne pepper. Add ground beef and mix well. Shape 1 1/2 tablespoon portions of the mixture into meatballs.
3. Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add meatballs and brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. They won’t be done at this point, but will get done as they bake.
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and add to the prepared baking dish. Nestle meatballs atop the pasta.
5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees (190 degrees C).
6. Pour beef broth into the same skillet and bring to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon. Pour in whipping cream and Worcestershire sauce to and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce has slightly thickened and reduced to 2 1/2 cups, 6 to 8 minutes.
7. Pour sauce over meatballs and pasta in the baking dish. Cover dish with foil.
8. Bake in the preheated oven until hot and bubbly, 20 minutes.
9. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese. Bake, uncovered until cheese melts, 3 to 5 minutes. Garnish with dill. Squeeze lemon wedge over the dish.