Sloppy Joes II Recipe

Transparency Alert: I LOVE sloppy joes. The sloppier, the better. Yes, I did enjoy the school cafeteria. Don't judge me.

But it's time to grow up a bit! Here's an excellent recipe for Sloppy Joes from All Recipes without the canned sloppiness. You could call these gourmet, if you like. I do.

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef 1/4 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard 3/4 cup ketchup 3 teaspoons brown sugar salt to taste ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a medium skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion, and green pepper; drain off liquids.
2. Stir in the garlic powder, mustard, ketchup, and brown sugar; mix thoroughly. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

When green peppers go on sale, I buy several, chop them, and then store them in snack size bags in the freezer. It's helpful to have those already on hand when dinner calls and you're in a pinch for some added flavor.

Darn* Delicious's One Pot Pasta Recipe

Photo Courtesy of Damn Delicious

There are a lot of recipes on Pinterest. A. LOT. And most of them that I've tried are pretty disappointing. It should be a rule that if you're going to "pin" a high class food photo to your recipe, that it should TASTE like something at a high class restaurant. But there are no rules on Pinterest, so the false advertising continues.

The photo for this one-pot wonder by Darn* Delicious was decent, so I figured it MIGHT be flavorful.

....and it was! So if you're looking for a FAST, pantry-friendly main course, look no further. This recipe also has the added bonus of less dishes to wash.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 1 (12.8-ounce) package smoked andouille sausage, thinly sliced
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 3 cups halved grape tomatoes
• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:

1. In a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium high heat, combine spaghetti, sausage, onion, tomatoes, basil, garlic and 4 1/2 cups water; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
2. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until pasta is cooked through and liquid has reduced, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in Parmesan.
3. Serve immediately.