Meatballs In Black Truffle Sauce

2 slices white bread crusts removed, broken into pieces
⅔ cup whole milk
2 ¼ cups finely minced ground beef (or a mixture of meats, such as pork, chicken or turkey)
½ cup meat pâté
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Plain All-purpose flour, for dusting
Olive oil for frying
1tablespoon+ 2 tsp butter
A drizzle of olive oil
1 bunch spring onions scallions, finely chopped
1 carrot finely chopped
1 heaped cup button or oyster mushrooms finely chopped
3 ½ tablespoon plain all-purpose flour
¼ cup white wine
2 cups beef chicken or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
½ cup double heavy cream
2 black truffles

Place the bread in a bowl and pour over the milk. Set aside to soak.
In a separate bowl, mix together the meat and the pâté. Add the soaked bread and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix until smooth and well combined. Form meatballs by rolling walnut-sized pieces of the mixture between your hands. They should be about 1oz each. Dust the meatballs in flour.
Heat some oil in a shallow pan over a medium-high heat and fry the meatballs just until they are golden. Do not overcook at this stage as we are going to finish them in the sauce. Set aside.
To make the sauce, heat the butter and olive oil in a pan over a medium-low heat and add the finely chopped spring onions, carrot and mushrooms. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the onion is transparent. Reduce the temperature to low and add the flour to the pan, stirring with a wooden spoon to make a roux. Cook for about 4 minutes and then add the wine, continuing to stir until you get a paste and the alcohol has evaporated, then add the stock with the salt and rosemary. Keep stirring and cooking until the sauce thickens, then add the cream, stirring so that the mixture doesn’t split or curdle. Add the meatballs to the sauce and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Grate the truffles into the sauce and serve immediately as the truffles lose their aroma quickly.

DIFFICULTY

EASY

TIME

10 mins

SERVINGS

PRICE

€€