Quick & Easy Healthy Homemade Sloppy Joes

I love really easy meals that are also comfort foods. I like them even more if they take no time at all to put together! One of my favorite comfort foods from my childhood is sloppy joes! It's super easy to make, takes no time at all, and all the ingredients are simple whole foods that when mixed together make the sloppiest and most tasty dinner, any kid is sure to love!

Sneaking veggies into my picky eater's meals

Look, I am not going to pretend that my kiddo likes to eat curry, or soups, or pretty much anything with a vegetable in it (including potatoes! What kid hates potatoes?), because he doesn't. Don't ask me how I ended up with a picky eater for a kid; I seriously homemade all of his baby food as a baby. My kid used to love his veggies, but taste buds change and all that I can do is get veggies into him any way that I can. Sloppy joes is one of those comfort foods that you can easily hide all sorts of veggies in, without changing the taste or texture of the dish. This dish got two thumbs up from Syfy!

Quick & Easy Healthy Homemade Sloppy Joes

These super tasty sloppy joes are made with whole ingredients and can be a sneakily healthy food for kids. I like to use my food processor to sneak in all sorts of vegetables that my son would normally not eat! You've gotta do, what you've gotta do! I have successfully hidden carrots, finely chopped greens, peppers, squash, lentils, and more!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 cup carrots, finely minced (I use my food processor, you can also substitute this with the requisite diced bell pepper!)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• (1) 6oz. can of tomato paste
• (1) 15 oz. can tomato sauce
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup (you can substitute brown sugar for the maple syrup)
• 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp. raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar (I like to use my Fire Cider for this!)
• 1 tsp. chile pepper powder
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large skillet, saute' onions until they are clear. Add in the garlic and saute' for 1-2 minutes more, until golden. Add in carrots and saute' 3-4 minutes more, until soft.
2. Crumble ground beef into the pan, and brown the ground beef, until the pink is gone.
3. Add in the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to simmer for 5 minutes more until, heated through and flavors combined.
4. Serve on buns, in lettuce wraps, or in steamed bell pepper cups. Enjoy!