It’s the last weekend for the Football Foodie College Football Pick’em Pool. Now, I don’t say that the current leader Studley has already won the pool, but for Wisconsin Rob, Doug or SA to overtake him to win, Studley’s going to have to miss more than half his picks this weekend and they’re going to need to be perfect.

No pressure or anything.

Studley’s a huge LSU fan, which ties neatly into a huge Packer fan winning last year’s NFL Pick’em Pool. (Note to self; get more Steeler fans involved in the pick’em leagues.)

Veggie Sloppy Joes

I’m not a fan of sloppy joes with ground meat, as they tend to be rubbery and spongy. I’m also not a fan of sloppy joes made with tofu or seitan. However, I am a huge fan of sloppy joes made with veggies, beans and mushrooms. By mincing the all the ingredients, you get a nice texture that is reminiscent of ground beef, but with a more toothsome feel from the beans, some crunch from the celery and a meaty taste from the mushrooms at the finish of cooking. The spice from the chili powder pared with just enough heat from the the cayanne pepper with the sweetness of the brown sugar make a nice substitute for the barbecue sauce you see in many sloppy joe recipes.

It also doesn’t hurt that sandwiches like these are lifesavers around the holidays when there is candy and parties and fatty food everywhere. No need to give up weekend football snacking just because you ate twenty-five pieces of crab rangoon the night before at a holiday party.

2 large carrots, cleaned and peeled
2-3 stalks of celery
1 medium onion
1 green bell pepper, seeds and stem removed
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can tomato sauce 15-16 oz
2 tablespoons tomato paste
15-16 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
8 oz mushrooms, cleaned
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1/3 teaspoon cayanne pepper (to taste)
buns, preferably whole wheat

This recipe also works with black beans, but you get a better taste with kidney beans.

Either with a sharp knife or in a food processor, chop the carrots, celery, pepper, and onion together to a small mince.

Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the carrot, celery, pepper and onion mixture.

Cook down a few minutes, stirring occasionally until softened.

Add the garlic and cook another minute or two.

Lower the heat to medium and add the salt, pepper, spices, brown sugar, tomato sauce and tomato paste.

Cover and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring once or twice.

While the sauce is cooking down, chop the kidney beans.

Check for seasoning.

Add the chopped kidney beans to the base, cover and cook another 2-3 minutes. Long enough to heat the beans, but not cause them to break down.

Mince the mushrooms.

Remove cover and stir in the mushrooms, lowering the heat if needed to prevent sticking.

Stir in the mushrooms and cook a few minutes more, until the Sloppy Joe’s has the thin or thick consistency as preferred.

Serve on toasted buns.

Why sandwich buns and not hamburger buns? Because I’m a little uptight about my sloppiness.

 

Veggie Sloppy Joes - Football Foodie
Author: 
Recipe type: sandwich
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6-8
 
Sloppy Joe recipe so complete and filling, you'll never miss the meat. (And you don't need tofu!)
Ingredients
  • 2 large carrots, cleaned and peeled
  • 2-3 stalks of celery
  • 1 medium onion
  • 1 green bell pepper, seeds and stem removed
  • 3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 can tomato sauce 15-16 oz
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 15-16 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 8 oz mushrooms, cleaned
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon mustard powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ⅓ teaspoon cayanne pepper (to taste)
  • buns
Instructions
  1. Either with a sharp knife or in a food processor, chop the carrots, celery, pepper, and onion together to a small mince.
  2. Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the carrot, celery, pepper and onion mixture.
  3. Cook down a few minutes stirring occasionally until softened.
  4. Add the garlic and cook another minute or two.
  5. Lower the heat to medium and add the salt, pepper, spices, brown sugar, tomato sauce and tomato paste.
  6. Cover and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring once or twice.
  7. While the sauce is cooking down, chop the kidney beans.
  8. Check for seasoning.
  9. Add the chopped kidney beans to the base, cover and cook another 2-3 minutes. Long enough to heat the beans, but not cause them to break down.
  10. Mince the mushrooms.
  11. Remove cover and stir in the mushrooms, lowering the heat if needed to prevent sticking.
  12. Stir in the mushrooms and cook a few minutes more, until the Sloppy Joe's has the thin or thick consistency as preferred.
  13. Serve on toasted buns.
Notes
The key to this recipe is making sure you have the veggies, beans and mushrooms chopped as fine as a ground meat for a better texture and even cooking. Don't overdo it on the spices, as it they will open up the more you cook the Sloppy Joes.

 

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6 Responses to Veggie Sloppy Joes – Football Foodie

  1. Steph says:

    Thanks for this, will definately give it a go.
    I’ve made Veggie sloppy joes before, except I used brown lentils (slightly mashed), which gave it a similar look and feel to mince, I’ll try using mushrooms too next time.

    I also like serving mine in buns with grated cheese and Mayo, makes it a bit leass healthy, but truely delicious!

    • sarah sprague says:

      I’ll try with mayo and cheese next time. I made this recipe with my vegan friends in mind, but no reason why I cannot try it with those two ingredients on my sandwich.

      Funny you should mention lentils. I’m starting to mess around with a chili recipe that calls for lentils instead of beef.

  2. ashley says:

    calories is it very fatting?

  3. Valerie says:

    Can this be made ahead and frozen? Then thawed, heated and served? I need to bring a make-ahead vegetarian meal to a family vacation.

    • sarah sprague says:

      Sorry for the slow reply!

      I don’t see why not, because in many ways it’s like a thicker marinara sauce, which most definitely can be frozen.

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