"Not So Sloppy" Sloppy Joes and Ranch Dressing Recipe

Earlier this week I found myself with a dinner dilemma. I'm sure you've been there before.


I had a pound of ground beef and wasn't sure what to make for dinner! We had already enjoyed beef tacos not too long ago and burgers didn't make the cut. I'm not one for meatloaf, and spaghetti didn't sound appetizing either!


I found some jumbo hamburger buns in my freezer and hopped online to see if I had all the ingredients to make sloppy joes. Most of the recipes I found called for bell peppers or tomato sauce. I don't care for either of those ingredients in sloppy joes (and didn't have them on hand either). So, I decided to make the most of what I had and create my own version of sloppy joes.

With toasted buns and melted cheese, these are DELISH!

They turned out wonderful! Even my hubby said, "I love it!". (I think that's a 10 in his book.) So I plan to make this again soon! They weren't too sloppy, soupy, or tomato-paste-tasting. They were just right!

"Not So Sloppy" Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground meat (your choice!)

1 tbl. EVOO

1/4 cup chopped onion (red or white)

1 clove garlic chopped

2 tbl. brown sugar

1 tbl. McCormick Montreal Seasoning

1 tbl. Worcestershire Sauce

3 tbl. apple juice

1/4 cup ketchup

1/4 cup favorite barbecue sauce (ours is Sweet Baby Rays!)

Directions:

Brown meat in olive oil over med/high heat.

Add onion and garlic to meat and finish browning.

Spoon out extra grease.

Keeping the pan nice and warm, add brown sugar and seasoning.

Stir and let caramelize.

Cook for about a minute.

Add Worcestershire sauce and apple juice. Cook 5 min.

Add ketchup and barbecue sauce. Turn to low and keep warm until served.

Serve the meat on toasted buns!
(just butter them up and brown in a pan over med/high heat or toast them in the oven)

Warmed them in the oven for a few mintues to melt the cheese.

You may want to add a bit more apple juice and more of the two sauces at the end - just to give it a bit more slop. Either way, the flavor is excellent!

My hubby's plate... always looks better than mine :o)

My entire family liked the taste of these sloppy joes,

even my picky two-year-old!!!

I had eggs on hand (straight from our backyard!) so we had deviled eggs on the side. Along with baked beans, carrots, and ranch dip.


If you like ranch dressing as much as we do, then the next recipe is for you! We used to buy it in a bottle, but now I make it from scratch - almost every other week!


Here's a recipe that will save you some money and you know what's in it! (As opposed to all the preservatives that we can't pronounce that are in shelved dressings.)


This one's a keeper! (Thanks Mom!)

Ranch dressing ingredients ready to go!

Mom's Homemade Ranch

Ingredients:

1 cup sour cream (or 1/2 cup sour cream & 1/2 cup buttermilk -

for more of a dressing consistency rather than a dip)

1 cup mayo

1/2 tsp. dried chives

1/2 tsp. dried parsley

Dash of Lawry's seasoning salt (to taste)

Dash garlic powder

1 tsp. light vinegar (I use white wine vinegar)

 

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

Great for salads, baked potatoes, dipping veggies, chips and anything else you enjoy with ranch.

 

 

Ranch dip and veggies - YUM!

I hope that you are having a wonderful first week of the new year!


Blessings,

I'm linked up with: