Sloppy Joes

I have been promising myself that I was going to make sloppy joes for the past year, but to be honest, they have intimidated the heck out of me.

As far as I knew, they only existed in cans or packets.  I didn’t have a clue where to start.

They were pretty much like frozen TV dinners or tuna noodle casserole.  They just simply …existed.  A staple of my childhood.

Sloppy Joes were the quick and easy dinner when there was no time for mom to cook. TV dinners were for that rare occasion when my parents went out and I was old enough to stay home alone.  I can still remember the little chocolate cake in the upper middle compartment of my favorite dinner. It was freaking awesome!  Pretty sure the list of chemicals involved in making it would send me screaming and running for the hills now, but back then…

And then there was the tuna noodle casserole.  Have no idea what my mother was thinking with that one.  Tuna.  Noodles.  Can of cream of something.  Potato chips.  Four things that were never intended to go together.  Ever.  The hills would not be far enough away from that one.  Fairly certain I can promise I will never post a recipe for a tuna noodle casserole.  Not even a vegan version.

Sloppy Joes on the other hand…

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup puy lentils, rinsed and cooked in water according to the package directions, then drained.
• 3/4 cup diced onion
• 3/4 cup diced green pepper
• 3 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 Tablespoon oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried, ground mustard
• 1  1/2 cups frozen tofu, grated on the large hole side of a grater (* see note at bottom of recipe)
• 2 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup red wine to deglaze pan (optional)
• 1 (6oz) can tomato paste
• 1 (15oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 Tablespoon maple syrup

Directions:

1. Saute onion and green pepper in pot over medium heat till softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute about 30 seconds.
2. Add oregano, salt, mustard Worcestershire sauce and tofu and saute another 30 seconds.  Add wine to the pan if using and cook till evaporated.
3. Pour in the tomato sauce, paste and maple syrup and stir well to combine.
4. Bring to a boil, then add lentils and turn to low to simmer for at least 15 minutes for flavors to blend.  (Longer is better, but not strictly necessary).  If it starts to get too thick, just add some water to bring it back to the consistency of Sloppy Joes.

*Note:  I opened a package of extra firm tofu, drained it, then wrapped it and put it in the freezer overnight, then put it into the fridge in the morning to soften up a bit.  It made it easy to grate without it falling apart.  If you don’t want to use tofu (swear no-one will know they are eating tofu, the grating totally gets rid of that texture thing), then double up on the lentils.

Enjoy!