Zesty Sloppy Joes!

Who loves sloppy joes?!  I do, I do!!!  I absolutely love sloppy joes!  There are few American beef dishes, if any, that are anywhere near as tempting as a well-made sloppy joe.  After watching Rachel Ray make sloppy lou's on "Week in a Day" a few weeks ago, I absolutely had to make sloppy joes right away.  This was my first attempt at homemade sloppy joes, and they were everything I wanted them to be and more.  Bye bye Manwich, there's a mean sloppy joe in town, and you better make room!

Zesty Sloppy Joes

1.5 lbs ground chuck
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 c - 1 c ketchup
1/4 c tomato paste
1 TB yellow mustard
1 tsp honey dijon or deli-style mustard
1 TB worcestershire sauce
1/4 c brown sugar
1 tsp chili powder and/or chipotle powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp Lawry's seasoned salt
1 tsp Tony Chachere's or other creole seasoning blend (or use similar seasons that you blend yourself)
1 small pinch of oregano
1 dash cider vinegar
1 tsp black pepper
salt to taste


Procedure:
1. Sautee onions and green pepper.

2. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, sautee ground beef, draining off excess fat.

3. Once excess fat is drained, add in onion, green pepper, garlic cloves, dry seasoning and brown sugar.  Continue cooking for about 2 minutes.

4. Add in vinegar, ketchup, tomato paste, mustards, and worcestershire sauce.

5. Continue cooking until beef is done and sauce thickens.

6. Serve on toasted sesame seed buns.  For an extra indulgent sloppy joe, top with stretchy white cheese like provolone, mozz, or even leftover string cheese strips, YUM!