Not-So-Sloppy Joes
We fell in love with the food in Israel and would probably be happy eating it every day forever, but now that we're back in the US, we're focusing on American food for Super Bowl weekend. We're also working on some new recipes that appeal to the *sometimes* picky, but always hungry kids behind Athlete Food.
Serve this recipe as sliders for a game day snack or make ahead and pull it out of the freezer on a cold February night. We freeze the meat in individual portions in this ice cube tray and then pack in individual ziploc bags.
We upped the nutritional content of traditional sloppy joes by sneaking in a few handfuls of chopped spinach leaves and grated carrots. The result is less sauce than the ones from our childhood memories, but can be served with extra bbq sauce if they aren't messy enough. Pickles on top and hot sauce on the side would work too.
ATHLETE FOOD UPGRADED SLOPPY JOES
SERVES 4
1 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon Athlete Food Green Seasoning **
1 large carrot, grated with a box grater
2 large handfuls of baby spinach, chopped finely by hand or with a food processor
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup water
1 tablespoon cane sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon chili powder (this can be upped if you aren't feeding kids who don't like spice!)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
salt & pepper
In a large saute pan, add the meat, Green Seasoning, carrots, and spinach. Cook over medium high heat until the meat is cooked through. Drain the extra fat.
Add ketchup, water, sugar, molasses, mustard and seasonings and cook over medium heat for 3-4 more minutes.
Allow to cool completely and pack for freezing. Or serve immediately on mini potato rolls with pickles and hot sauce.
**We suggest keeping a jar of Athlete Food Green Seasoning in your refrigerator to make recipes like this easier to throw together without having to deal with chopping onions or garlic. But if you don't have any on hand, you can use a chopped onion and one clove of minced garlic.
