Albóndigas en Salsa de Almendras (Spanish Meatballs in Almond Sauce)

Ingredients

• 300 g ground pork
• 300 g ground beef
• 3 white bread, crusts removed
• 5⅓ tbsp milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 4 garlic, 2 crushed and 2 left whole
• 4 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 3 tbsp wheat flour, for dusting
• 5⅓ tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 80 g almonds, blanched
• 1 pinch saffron, crumbled
• 1¼ dl white wine
• 5 dl chicken stock
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste

Method

1. 1.

   Soak the bread in milk — Tear two slices of the bread into a bowl, pour over the milk and leave to soak for 5 minutes. Squeeze out the excess milk with your hands and mash what is left to a smooth paste.

2. 2.

   Shape the meatballs — Mix the bread paste with the pork, beef, beaten egg, the two crushed garlic cloves, half the parsley, 1 tsp salt and plenty of black pepper. Knead for a minute until the mixture turns springy, then roll into 20 walnut-sized balls and dust them lightly with flour.

3. 3.

   Sear the meatballs — Heat the olive oil in a wide pan over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs in two batches, turning them, until coloured all over — about 5 minutes a batch. They should not cook through. Lift them onto a plate.

4. 4.

   Make the almond picada — In the same oil, fry the remaining slice of bread, the two whole garlic cloves and the almonds until everything is golden, 3-4 minutes; watch the almonds closely, they scorch in seconds. Tip the lot into a blender with the saffron and a ladle of the stock and blitz to a smooth beige paste — this picada is the whole sauce.

5. 5.

   Soften the onion and deglaze — Soften the chopped onion in the pan over medium-low heat for about 8 minutes, until translucent and sweet. Pour in the white wine, scrape the base clean and let it reduce by half.

6. 6.

   Simmer in the sauce — Stir in the almond picada and the remaining stock, return the meatballs with their juices and simmer uncovered for 25 minutes, shaking the pan now and then rather than stirring. The sauce should end up the thickness of pouring cream and the meatballs cooked right through.

7. 7.

   Season and rest — Taste the sauce for salt — the almonds soak up more than you expect — scatter with the remaining parsley and let the pan sit for 5 minutes before serving with bread or plain white rice.