Monday, August 10, 2009

Sloppy Joes with Fresh Ground Sirloin and Homemade Buns



I can tell when I haven’t been making enough man food around here. Jesse, my husband, starts incessantly talking about his deep love of bacon. He also requested Sloppy Joes of all things for dinner. I tend to fall into vegetarian tendencies naturally, often forgetting he grew up on a small farm with cattle.

Knowing I’ve pushed my luck a bit too far I fulfilled this man food request. I’m not all that excited about this honestly. Sure it tasted great, and the homemade bun was fabulous, but my overexcited inner child is not jumping for joy here. If only this sandwich was made of beautifully grilled fresh vegetables, that would make my soul sing!

My husband however, was ecstatic I made this meaty sandwich. He loved it! There’s something about many men and meat I just don’t understand. Jesse and the other males in my family get excited when meat shows up on the table. They visibly start to become more animated and announce how much they love the meal, no matter how simple. On the other hand, if I feed them quiche and chai tea, they look like I’ve beaten them and their testosterone levels appear to drop.

I also realize if I don’t make these meaty man food items on occasion, my husband will try to put up with me for awhile as best he can, but will soon start knocking on neighbors’ doors begging for a good meal, all the while repeatedly broadcasting bacon to be his favorite vegetable.

I’m steaming artichokes and roasting corn for lunch. I’ll likely need to redeem myself soon by making more man food for this atrocity against male nature.

Bread Machine Hamburger or Hot Dog Buns

Ingredients
1 1/3 cups water
2 tablespoons non-fat milk powder
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons shortening
2 1/2 to 3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 packet yeast (about 2 1/2 teaspoons)

Directions
Add all the ingredients to the bread machine pan except flour and yeast. Top the ingredients with the flour, and put the yeast on top of the flour. Set the dough cycle and push start.

When cycle finishes, turn out onto a floured board and punch down. Knead 4 or 5 times; add a little more flour as you knead if necessary to keep it from sticking.

Cover dough with a clean dishcloth and let rest for about 30 minutes. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with cornmeal.

For hamburger buns: Press dough into a circle and cut into 8 even wedges; form each wedge into a ball then flatten into a smooth and fairly even circle.

For hot dog buns: Shape these into long narrow snakes. (Makes about 12 or so.)

Place dough shapes on the baking sheet and let rest for about 20 minutes (cover with a clean dish towel or parchment paper).

Bake at 375 for about 18 minutes, or until nicely browned.

Makes 8 large buns.

Super Sloppy Joes

(Double the recipe for 8 sandwiches)

Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
1 1/4 pounds ground beef sirloin (See notes below for grinding your own)
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon steak seasoning blend, such as McCormick brand Montreal Seasoning
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped (I used green)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cups tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 crusty rolls, split, toasted, and lightly buttered

Directions
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and meat to the pan. Spread the meat around the pan and begin to break it up.

Combine brown sugar and steak seasoning. Add sugar and spice mixture to the skillet and combine.

When the meat has browned, add onion and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and cook onions, peppers, red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce with meat for 5 minutes.

Add tomato sauce and paste to pan. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to simmer and cook Sloppy Joe mixture 5 minutes longer.

Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, pile sloppy meat onto toasted, buttered bun bottoms and cover with bun tops.

Serves 4

Notes: Instructions for grinding your own meat in a food processor can be found at http://www.ehow.com/how_2050012_grind-beef-home.html.

Super Sloppy Joe recipe belongs to Rachael Ray. Bun recipe by Diana Rattray from About.com with rewritten instructions for clarity purposes. Picture by Laura Flowers.


18 comments:

Chef Fresco said...

Haha totally sounds like me & Micheal- he can never get enough 'man-food' and would totally love this recipe!

Anonymous said...

I am afraid I must have an inner man that is just dying to get out. I would much rather have the Sloppy Joe than the other options. Not that I don't love a nice quiche - but veggies just aren't my thang.

Beautiful as always.

The Cooking Photographer said...

I don't think you are alone. My female MySpace friends loved this one too. Maybe it's just me. :)

Anonymous said...

oh man...I haven't had one of these in years. Thanks for bringing me back to those flavors...yum!

Rachelle S said...

Yum!! I was just sharing my recipe for sloppy joe's with a friend. The buns looks great, I'll have to give them a try!

Alettesiriane said...

thankyou fot this I am the aunt of a 14 year old who has lived in the US all his life,and now home in Norway he is homesick for his favorite food,and sloppy joes has been one!

Sherri Murphy said...

Well, you've just made a Sloppy Joe a Gourmet Joe! Yumm!

Heather S-G said...

mmmmm...they look delicious to me. I actually enjoy "man food"...LO!!! I made sloppy joes the other day, too...and they really hit the spot :D

TallieAnn said...

I know just how you feel. My husband talks about his love for bacon and Arby's sandwiches incessantly. He rarely gets to eat either.

Lori R. said...

That recipe sounds like a winner. I also have lived on a cattle farm for 32 years of being married to farm hubby. I never knew what good beef was until we started having our own butchered. It is kinda of different because you know what is in the beef. Since selling off all our cattle 1 1/2 years ago, we now eat more chicken and fish at my request. We seem to be adjusting just fine...

Jamie said...

This is too funny! Man meal, indeed. Poor husband. Mine has other problems, like either too many heavy fattening things in a row or nothing....

These sloppy joes look fabulous and something my Mr. Persnickety has been asking for and I have never made them. Now I have a recipe! Thanks!

Cate O'Malley said...

Looks fabulous, especially the homemade bun!

Spryte said...

Mmmm.... I LOVE sloppy joes and have only recently started trying different recipes to make them from scratch! I'll definitely have to give yours a try!

Patricia @ ButterYum said...

These look and sound scrumptious!!!

My hubby would revolt if I didn't give him meat every night. I can, on very rare occasions, get away with a non-meat dish like lasagna, just as long as it's loaded with cheese (his idea of a suitable meat substitute)... :).

Anyway, you are a better wife than I by making the buns too!

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Anonymous said...

Keep posting stuff like this i really like it

Patrick K. said...

Your blog is wonderful and I frequently use it to find ideas for the upcoming week. I just sat down to make this and realized that the brown sugar wasn't in the ingredient list. I Googled the original from Rachael Ray to find out that it was a quarter cup. Just thought I'd leave a comment. Thanks for all the inspiration you've given me.

The Cooking Photographer said...

Patrick thank-you for helping me fix this recipe! I sometimes (often) make mistakes no matter how many times I proofread.

Thank-you for reading my blog too.

Laura

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