Sloppy Joe's a la Jenn

Or what we like to call them...Sloppy Jenn's :)

Growing up this was a staple in my family for weeknight meals. They were fast, yummy and a great way to hide vegetables! Plus, what kid doesn't love eating messy foods with their hands!!

Now that I am older, and have read what goes into the canned Sloppy Joe sauce, I decided that this is totally something that would benefit being made from scratch. The sodium and weird unpronounceable ingredients freak me out. Not to mention the taste just isn't the same anymore.

Here is a great, easy, tastier version of Sloppy Jenn's!

 In a large saucepan cook about 6 slices of chopped thick cup bacon until crispy and brown. Remove bacon from pan set aside on some paper towel. Leave the grease in the pan as well will be using the same pan to brown the meat.

 Finely chop 1 Onion, 1/2 Large Green Pepper, 1 Jalapeno and 1 garlic clove, set aside

 I found it best to make my sloppy joe sauce before I started anything else. That way it is ready to pour in once the meat is browned. For the sloppy joe sauce you will need 1/2 Cup Ketchup, 1 small can tomato paste, 1/2 Cup water, 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, dash of cinnamon...really..just one shake of my shaker was enough, salt and pepper to taste

 Whisk to combine and set aside. The sauce will be pretty thick.

 In your bacon greased saucepan add 1/2lb ground turkey and 1/2lb extra lean ground sirloin along with all the pre-chopped veggies.

 Brown on medium high heat, stirring frequently

 Once meat is browned lower the heat to medium low and add back your pre-cooked bacon

 And then the sauce

 Cook covered for about 10-15 minutes. If the mixture get too dry you can add a bit more water...or in my case..we added about a 1/4 cup of beer and simmered for an extra 10 minutes.

Serve on a crusty kaiser bun with sharp cheddar grated on top. Perfectly messy supper~~and done in about 30 minutes!