Sometime in February.

Everyone swears I have made sloppy joes for the staff before, but never have....i promise! But it got me thinking that I should...so i did! I served them with a fancy applesauce and dressed up canned baked beans!!! I wasn't a huge fan of the applesauce, so I am just posting the joes and the beans...enjoy!



Sloppy Joes

1 pound extra-lean ground beef
1/2 cup onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 jalapeno, minced
1/2 red pepper, finely diced
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon mustard powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
8 whole-wheat burger buns toasted

Brown the meat and the onion in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, breaking up the meat into crumbles as it cooks. Pour the drippings out of the pan and discard. Add the garlic, jalapeno, and red pepper and cook 5 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Stir in the rest of the ingredients, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 5 minutes more. Place a half-cup scoop of the mixture onto each bun and serve.




Baked Bean Casserole

1 tablespoon butter
1 small onion, diced
1/2 pound bacon
1 (28 ounce) can baked beans
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
1 cup brown sugar, divided

Preheat an oven to 400 degrees.
Melt the butter in a skillet over low heat. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place the bacon in a large, deep skillet, and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon slices on a paper towel-lined plate. Cut bacon into bite-sized pieces and set aside. Combine the baked beans, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, mustard, and onions in a 2-quart casserole dish. Stir in 2/3 of the cooked bacon and 1/4 of the brown sugar until evenly mixed. Cover the bean mixture with the remaining bacon, and sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar. Bake in the preheated oven until hot and bubbly, about 45 minutes.

Yum!!