By Adam Berkelmans

www.TheIntrepidEater.com
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Serves: 6
Time to Prepare: 30 minutes
Time to Cook: 1 hour

This creamy stew was inspired by Swedish meatballs with creamy gravy. I added lots of fun ingredients and expanded the gravy into a creamy stew base to float the super tender and tasty meatballs in.

Ingredients

For the Meatballs: 

• 1 pound ground venison
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 small onion, finely minced or grated
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons parsley minced
• 1 tablespoon butter

For the Stew:

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 pound small white button mushrooms, quartered (optional)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 3 cups venison or chicken stock
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 3 ounces fresh spinach
• 1 tablespoon minced parsley (plus a pinch for garnish)
• 1 pound store-bought gnocchi

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, cream, egg, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Let sit for 10 minutes to allow the breadcrumbs to soak up the cream.
2. Add the venison, onion, garlic, and parsley and mix well. With wet hands, form into small meatballs, about the size of a ping pong ball. You should end up with 20-25 meatballs.
3. Melt the butter in a large, deep skillet or pot over medium heat and add the meatballs. Cook until browned on all sides, turning them gently as they are soft. Don’t worry about cooking them all of the way through.
4. Gently transfer the meatballs to a plate and add the other tablespoon of butter, the chopped onion, and the mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes, then add the garlic. Cook for 2 more minutes, then add the flour. Mix it in well and let cook for 2 minutes. Add the wine and use a spatula to scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add the stock and the cream.
5. Add the meatballs back in, then add the peppers.
6. Cook over medium-low heat, on a low simmer, for 20 minutes.
7. Add the spinach, parsley, and gnocchi, cook for another 15 minutes.
8. To serve, transfer to bowls and sprinkle with fresh parsley. Enjoy!