Sloppy Joes Eat the Beat/Tasty Tools

When I sat down to do this entry I started singing to myself. The song I was singing was "Lunch Lady" by Adam Sandler. There is a part that he sings "sloppy joe, slop, sloppy joe". So I got the brillant idea to do a blogging event a little early. Eat to the Beat has become a quarterly event now. So who cares if I am a month early. Elly says it is okay.

And while we are at it.. why not participate in another blogging event? Joelen has been hosting tasty tools events on her blog. So since this includes the use of the this months tool the whisk I will submit it for that. Yay! :) What a great way to kill a bunch of birds with 1 stone.

For two summers during college I worked in a church camp kitchen. Besides a ton of great memories with some dear friends, I learned a lot of cooking/baking tricks/tips too. One of the meals we made weekly was sloppy joes. Since our menu didn't change through out the summer (new campers every week) you got pretty sick of the same meals. But after all the years have gone by I find myself enjoying some of the classics. I have no idea what the exact recipe is for the sloppy joes. But I remembered the key ingredients. I made them before over a year ago, but this time I decided to add a bunch to the recipe.

1/2 yellow onion
(Sautee in dutch oven with olive oil until softened)
1 lb of lean ground beef
(Add to the onions and cook through)


2 Cups Ketchup
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Yellow Mustard
2 TBS Apple Cider Vinegar
2 tsp Cumin
2 tsp Black Pepper
2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Chili Powder
1 tsp Corriander

Wisk all ingredients together and add to the dutch oven when the meat is browned. Simmer for 2 hours (or more). I was making this in advance for leftovers, so no pictures of the sandwiches yet. I feel pretty excited that I made this up for the most part.

NY Strip Steak and Veggies

I was really looking forward to a good steak tonight. I used some good old Spice House seasoning again and grilled along side some mixed veggies, and some corn on the cob (Michigan's finest of course). My favorite way to do veggies these days is straight on the grill. My medium baking sheet fits right on the rack. Some S&P and some Olive Oil = the best veggies ever. :)

Flank Steak and Portabellas on the Grill

Flank Steak has become one of my favorite items to grill. Costco sells a two pack for a resonable price. I use this for company often. Most recently I used if for fajitas for company. This meal was just a simple one for dinner with plenty of leftovers for the week. I marinated it in some fajita seasoning mixed with bbq sauce. Before putting on the grill I drizzled with some Olive Oil and some Montreal Seasoning.


The mushrooms were simply drizzled with Olive Oil and S&P.

I also cooked up some chicken tenderloins on the grill for meals later in the week. Those were marinated in fajita seasoning.

Friday Night Dinner

I was inspired today by the box of spices I received. I pulled out some burgers from the freezer a little late. I wasn't interested in microwaving them. So I thought a wet marinade may work well. So I pulled out my box of spices and chose the Mesquite Spice Packet Marinade. I wouldn't typically use a wet marinade on burgers because it could make it too messy. But since they were still frozen I thought it would be okay. The burgers were 1/2 Ground Beef an 1/2 Ground Turkey. I mixed up the marinade and poured it over the top.

Black Bean Salad

1 Can of Black Beans (rinsed and drained)
1 Can diced tomatoes (drained) Fresh would have been better here
1 Orange Pepper, diced
1 Small red onion, diced
1/2 TBS of Southwest Seasoning
Serve Cold