sophisto joes

How long has it been since you've eaten sloppy joes? I have a feeling the last time I had one was as a school lunch in elementary school.

The last time I was home, I saw this recipe in "Gourmet" and I wrote it down in my recipe notebook.

Since I had recently opened a bottle of wine, I figured that this was a good time to try this recipe. On top of that, it has been really cold and kind of gloomy and I've been in the mood for some comfort food.

Sophisto Joes from Gourmet, October 2007 : Serves 4

Ingredients
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, drained
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 celery rib, finely chopped
1 1/2 lb ground beef chuck
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
4 kaiser rolls, split

Preparation:
Purée tomatoes in a blender.

Cook onion and garlic in butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to brown, 4 to 5 minutes.

Add carrot, celery, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, 4 to 5 minutes.

Add beef and brown, stirring to break up lumps, 5 to 6 minutes.

Add chili powder, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring, 2 minutes.

Add puréed tomatoes, wine, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar and boil, stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened, about 6 minutes.

Season with salt and sandwich inside rolls.

NOTES: First off, I cut the recipe in half, since there is only the 2 of us. I used a canned tomato sauce which had garlic and onion blended in. The sauce also had some sugar in it, so I think when I added the suggested amount of sugar, this made the sauce a bit sweet. The next time I make this, I think I'll either leave out the sugar or not use the canned tomato sauce.

Also, I used some roasted garlic that I had in my refrig instead of fresh garlic and EVOO instead of butter. I also did not know what chuck was in Japanese, so I just used the ground beef that is sold in the markets. Is it the same thing?

I didn't use the amount of salt they had listed, I just did a little sprinkle and several grinds of pepper. I couldn't find hamburger buns nor kaiser rolls at the supermarket, so I ended up getting butter rolls. Can you believe that they only sell 6 rolls in a bag here? Anyway, they were smaller than hamburger buns, but tasted good with this recipe. (I actually wanted to get the rolls with wheat/grains in them but they had some weird butter substitute in them.)

I served the sophisto joe with some cole slaw. This was a great combination of comfort foods. (I actually had another sophisto joe after eating the slaw and the one in the photo.)

Up until now, I have never used the canned version of sloppy joes nor have I ever made sloppy joes, but I think this recipe is a keeper--it is fast, easy and delicious.

Hope you have a nice weekend.