Sloppy Joes

It is official! Fall is here.

This kind of year conjures up lots of memories. I think of sweaters and hearty warm soups and stews. Have you ever noticed that some foods are nostalgic, not just this time of year, but year round? Do you remember growing up with Sloppy Joes?

There is one meal I remember from my childhood that I dearly loved, and that is the Sloppy Joe. My mom made these, not as often as I would have liked her to. Sometimes the cafeteria at school would make them.  I always asked mom to give me lunch money on those days.

Whenever my mom would tell us we were having Sloppy Joes for dinner, I always loved it and could not wait for dinner.

It always seemed like a treat when we did eat it. Perhaps that is why it holds such a wonderful place in my heart.  It is that messy kind of eating that I must have enjoyed. There is nothing pretentious about a Sloppy Joe. No forks or knives. It is just you, your sandwich and well perhaps a lot of napkins or paper towels. It is all hands on food and maybe that is why I enjoyed it so much.

There is so many ways you can make this stuff. In fact they even have it in a can. All you do is brown your ground beef and mix together.

You can even make this vegetarian.  For my Lentil Sloppy Joe Sliders, I used lentils instead of ground beef.

So the next time you are struggling and pondering what to make for your next meal, let your inner child decide.  Sloppy Joes it is!

Sloppy Joes

1 pound ground beef
1 medium Spanish onion minced
1/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup yellow mustard
1/3 cup molasses

Brown ground beef and onion in a large skillet. Drain all the fat. Mix ketchup, mustard and molasses. Mix into the ground beef and heat through. Serve on your favorite bun.

Peace be with you,

Veronica

Copyright 2013 Veronica Gantley