Sloppy Chipotle Joes!

My best friend, Kelsie, came over to cook (and eat) with us and insisted I put a picture of myself up here since I'm the chef! I'm actually holding the side dish, which I will tell you about later, but I just wanted to caption this picture first!

So chipotle sloppy joes. They taste just as good as they sound! Here's the basic recipe for healthier sloppy joes, and then i'll show you how i kicked them up to chipotle flavor!

Sloppy Joes:

1 lb ground turkey

1 T EVOO

1 packet of sloppy joe seasoning

1 small can tomato paste

1/2 small onion diced

Toasted Wheat Buns

And thats it! You brown the turkey and onions in the olive oil. Once brown, add the tomato paste, the seasonings, and about 1 cup of water to the skillet. Boil about 10 minutes until thick and hearty.

Here's what i added

1/2 red bell pepper chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped

1 T Worcestire sauce

I cooked the pepper, garlic, and adobo with the turkey like in the directions above. Once browned up, I added the water, tomato paste, seasoning packet, and Worcestire sauce. Let it simmer for 10 minutes and cook down. Serve on toasted wheat buns!

Now, the side I cooked, that I happen to be holding in the first picture, was called Ceasar Asian Veggies. SO EASY! Here's the recipe that I kinda made up on the fly... I'll tell you how to make it easier if you want:

Ceasar Asian Veggies

1 bag of frozen broccolli and cauliflower (mixed)

1 bag of frozen snap peas

(Easy idea: One packet of caesar salad dressing mix, DRY!)

1 T Olive Oil

IF YOU DON'T GO WITH THE PACKET, use these ingredients:

1 T lemon peel, grated

1/4 t garlic powder

1/2 t pepper

1 t oregano (Dried)

1 t thyme (Dried)

6 T grated parmesan cheese

1/2 t salt

All you do is add the veggies to the oil, and toss with the seasonings! Cover and cook on medium to medium-high for about 8-10 minutes, or until soft and tender.

These were truly delicious. I thought they might be a joke since there were so few ingredients, but between the 3 of us, we devoured them. Kelsie and Nick probably ate less than i did, but i was pretty crazy about them!

Another view:

If you use the caesar dressing packet, this would be a cheap and easy side dish. I recommend trying it! I just couldn't find a packet in my Kroger, so i went with my own mix. You could also probably try Italian dressing mix!

Here was the final plate:

The orzo was leftover from my mom's house. That recipe will come one day in the future. Nick loves that orzo salad, but I can't post a recipe until i make it. You know the way i work by now, right?

ENJOY!

And did i mention that my husband surprised me with flowers on our one month anniversary???? He's the best!