Is Ikea Without the Furniture Still Ikea?

Yes, because their Swedish meatballs are, in my opinion, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Forget the different "rooms" they have on display that make yours look unorganized and lacking. Forget the jackpot winner feeling you get when you discover The Perfect Holey (Holy?) Scarf Hanger hiding inside an unassuming closet in said "rooms." Forget even their scary furniture that I have been fortunate enough not to have needed to build. It's the Swedish meatballs that make Ikea...Ikea. 

Now, I haven't been inside an Ikea since 2012, but I remember their yummy meatballs and that lingonberry jam like it was yesterday. So how excited was I to see Swedish Meatballs and Braised Kale with Lingonberry Jam and Creamy Mashed Potatoes on Blue Apron's recipe box? Well, let me just say that my boyfriend was incredibly jealous and slightly peeved that I had broken our rule about cooking Blue Apron only when we've reunited. Oops.

Unboxing all the ingredients exposed me to a new type of kale. I've always only had curly kale, so I was pleasantly surprised to see its softer cousin, the dino kale, in the mix. The dino kale was easier to slice (and hence, why many recipes call for it to be in "ribbons"...something I did not get when I was dealing with its curly counterpart) and definitely required less maintenance. 

Cooking this recipe took a lot less time than I had been expecting to. With three parts to manage--the meatballs, the mashed potatoes, and the kale--I surprised myself by finishing everything up within an hour. 

The dish was quite tasty and made for great leftovers, but there was definitely one qualm I had: I wish Blue Apron gave more lingonberry jam. I'm quite sure I was not the only one who felt this way, as lingonberry jam is just SO DELICIOUS. I could eat it by the spoonful! 

I don't know when my next Ikea trip will be, but now I know I can always bring Ikea (aka the Swedish meatballs) home, sans the scary furniture.