The Hungry Apple

These messy sandwiches are a childhood classic with a homemade twist. An old family tradition courtesy of mi madre. She’s been cooking up sloppy joes as long as I can remember. I am not sure if this is her exact recipe but I wanted to give credit where credit is due.  We didn’t rely on Manwich back in the day. Oh no. I’ve actually never had Manwich  but I am sure these are better.

When you hear the phrase “Sloppy Joes” do you immediately get Adam Sandler’s SNL song stuck in your head? Just me?

You start out by browning ground beef with onion. I have made them multiple times with ground turkey and they are just as delicious.

The secret ingredient for these bad boys is gumbo. Yes gumbo. If you don’t have any leftovers you can use a can of gumbo soup. I suggest Campbell’s Chicken Gumbo.

Sampling. So important and the biggest advantage to being the cook!

Another comfort food recipe in the books.

If you are looking for a satisfying side dish for these beauties try roasted okra.

Okra is such an underrated vegetable in my opinion and it seems like it is always fried.

All you need is okra, olive oil, salt and pepper.  Arrange on a parchment lined baking sheet and cook for 25 minutes on 400 degrees. They are the shape of fries and you can eat them with your hands but they are green and good for you too!

SLOPPY JOES

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground beef (or ground turkey)

1 small onion, finely diced

10 oz leftover gumbo (or 10 oz can of Campbell’s Chicken Gumbo Soup)

1/3 cup ketchup

2 1/2 teaspoons yellow mustard

2 teaspoons dried parsley, optional (but not optional if you are taking pictures 🙂 )

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon salt

10 grinds of freshly ground pepper

Instructions and Directions:

Over medium heat brown ground beef or turkey and diced onion in a large skillet. There should be no need to drain if you use lean ground beef. After the meat is no longer pink, add remaining ingredients. Reduce heat to low and cook until mixture thickens. About 5-7 minutes. Serve on hamburger buns and with roasted okra!

Roasted Okra: 

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the tops off of 1 pound (approximately 35 pods) of okra. In a large bowl toss okra with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and 10-15 grinds of fresh pepper. Bake on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet for 20-25 minutes.