Open Faced Sloppy Joe’s Ala Pam

Bev had bought some ground chuck on sale about the same time that Pam posted the recipe for Open Faced Italian Sloppy Joe’s on her "For The Love Of Cooking" blog so I decided to give it a try.  Bev has said that a friends Sloppy Joe’s are the only ones she’s ever liked so this was a little bit of a risk to make.  I followed the recipe except I salted at each step, added a good shake of Italian Seasoning after tasting the assembled mixture, and changed the garlic toast as noted.  Check Pam’s blog for her original recipe and photo’s like this one below of her dish.

Open Faced Sloppy Joe’s – Adapted from For The Love Of Cooking

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

2 lbs lean ground beef (Larry used ground chuck)

Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

1 medium yellow onion, diced

1 medium red bell pepper, diced

Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

5 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 (6 oz) can of tomato paste

1 (28 oz) can of crushed tomatoes

2-3 tsp sugar, to taste (Larry used 2T)

Fresh parmesan, for serving

Fresh parsley, finely chopped, for serving

Garlic Toast:

4 tbsp salted butter, softened to room temperature (See Larry’s method below)

1/2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely minced

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Shredded Parmesan (added by Larry)

Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

1 loaf of French bread

Instructions:

1. Make the sauce by heating one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Add the ground beef then season with a bit of sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Cook, breaking up the meat with the spatula, until it is well browned and in crumbles, about 8-10 minutes. Drain the fat and remove the beef to a plate and set aside.

3. Add the last tablespoon of olive oil to the same skillet over medium high heat.  Add the onion, red bell pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes then cook, stirring often, until softened and lightly browned, about 5-6 minutes.

4. Add the garlic, basil, and oregano then cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.

5. Add the tomato paste then cook, stirring until well incorporated into the onion & peppers, about 1-2 minutes.

6. Add the crushed tomatoes and sugar then stir to combine. Add the beef and it's juices then mix well. Simmer for 10 minutes while you cook the garlic toast. Taste and re-season if needed before serving.

7. Make the garlic toast by slicing the bread into ¾“ thick pieces.

8. Generously butter each slice and shake on some garlic powder.

9. Add some chopped parsley and Parmesan and use the toast cycle in the toaster oven.

10. To serve, spoon sauce over a slice of garlic toast letting the sauce cascade over the sides. 

11.Top with lots of freshly grated Parmesan and fresh parsley. Serve immediately. Enjoy.

We all enjoyed it but it was not nearly as sweet as normal Sloppy Joe’s – I thought the taste was between a Sloppy Joe and a Bolognese Sauce.  We didn’t have a side so we could eat as much of the dish as we wanted.  Thanks for a good supper Pam.

Photos can be enlarged by clicking on them and the blue words are links.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

Larry

6/7/19 event date