Super Sloppy Joe's ~ 3.22.11

You'd think that everyone loves sloppy Joe's, huh? Not in this family. So, I don't make them all that often. But when I asked G what special dinner he'd like me to make on the day he received his first reconciliation and it just so happened to be the feast of St. Joseph, he said, "Sloppy Joe's"!
Funny thing is, when we get to the table, the kids were all over the place about eating them or even trying them. Ah, children. This is not the first time I've made these and depending on the day, somewhere between 1 and 4 of the kids will eat it all with no complaints!

Regardless, this is a great kid favorite and the grown ups in our house love it, too. I think using half ground turkey (93/7) and half ground chuck works best for us. I also sub out green pepper for red in my recipe. I love the color it adds and I just don't like green peppers all that much. Now, when it comes to that laundry list of seasonings, don't fret, if you don't have steak sauce, don't use it! But add that pinch of cloves, it's just a unique underlying flavor that makes you go hmmm.... Lastly, know that these are a bit more sweet than spicy. So, cut back on the ketchup if you don't like it so sweet or add some Frank's or whatever to add a little spice. The original recipe had brown sugar in it and I just omit that all together.

Super Sloppy Joe's

adapted from Taste of Home

2 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 celery ribs, minced fine
1/4 cup chopped red pepper
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 Tbs vinegar
1 Tbs worchestershire sauce
1 Tbs Heinz steak sauce
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp ground mustard
pinch gr cloves

hamburger buns

1. Over medium heat, cook beef, onion, celery and red pepper until meat is no longer pink and veggies are tender. Drain off fat.
2. Add rest of the ingredients. Simmer uncovered, 25 minutes, stir occasionally.
3. Spoon onto buns.

4. Serve leftovers like this:

Sloppy Joe Pasta!

Savory Sweet Potato Soup + Smoked Apple Panini~ 10.21.10

Oh how I love this season and all the comforting soups that accompany it.

One of my favorites that I discovered last year is the Farm Chick's Savory Sweet Potato Soup. It is so incredibly easy to make and I've been eating it up ALL week.

What goes better with soup than a hot, pressed sandwich (aka PANINI)? We have a wonderful little deli near our home and they serve up a hot sandwich every day of the week. A few of my favorites are the Cuban and the Monte Cristo. A little variation on your traditional grilled cheese... these sandwiches have FLAIR and really FUN FLAVORS!
Today's advertised sandwich was the Smoked Apple Panini and they were starting to serve it at 11. Well, I was there at 10:15 and I wanted that sandwich. SO, I saved myself a couple bucks and bought up some deli meat and a loaf of bread and made it AT HOME. The flavors were so beautiful together. Black Forest Ham, Smoked Gouda and... APPLE BUTTER! Who knew putting apple butter on your sandwich could elevate that simple pairing of meat, cheese and bread to the level of PURE BLISS? Well, I am a fan and hope to eat that one again... and again... and again. AND did you know that you do not need a fancy schmancy panini press to make these? I don't have one. I used my tea kettle and a piece of foil to press my sandwich! Improvise!!

Here are the recipes!

Savory Sweet Potato Soup
makes 2 quarts

The original has a few extra steps and uses heavy cream, but I have adapted it a bit and find that it is just as creamy and delicious my way.

1/2 stick butter
2-3 onions, chopped
6 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled & cubed (small enough to fit on your spoon)
1 1/2 lbs russet potatoes, peeled & cubed
2 tsp ground cumin
1-2 tsp dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste

1. Melt butter in large pot and add onions. Sauted until softened & translucent- about 5 minutes.
2. Add the broth and sweet potatoes. Bring to a boil. Cook 10 minutes.
3. Add the russett potatoes. Cook for another 10 minutes- you want them tender. (sometimes I scoop out the sweets and add them back in after the russetts have cooked. Not quite sure why you don't add them ALL at the same time...)
4. At this point, I add the seasonings- cumin, parsely and S&P. Then I scoop out some of the potatoes and puree the rest. I don't like it ALL pureed. I like some potatoes in my soup. You could just leave it as is- no pureeing OR do as I do and puree some and leave some potatoes whole OR puree the whole pot of soup. Make it yours.
5. Cook over low heat until warmed through. Serve.

Here's a link to the original with a few extra recipes included.

Smoked Apple Panini
(instructions for one panini)

Couple slices Black Forest Ham
Slice or two of Smoked Gouda cheese
2 slices bread of your choice
butter
Apple (or in my case, Pear) Butter

Slather the outside of both slices of bread with butter and preheat your griddle.
Place one piece of bread, butter side down on griddle.
Lay your slice of gouda on that piece - I halve my cheese to make it fit the bread I had.
Lay your ham on top of the cheese.
Spread the inside of your other piece of bread with the apple/pear butter. Lay that on top of the ham, with the apple butter side touching the HAM.

Place a piece of foil over your sandwich and top it with something heavy.... like a filled tea kettle!
Cook for a few minutes and check to see how toasty the first side of bread is getting. If ready to flip... then flip and repeat.

Serve hot with a nice bowl of soup!

ps. Come back soon, b/c I have the CUTEST mini caramel apples to show you! You're gonna cry when you see how cute they are!!!!