Beth’s Sloppy Joes

I first met Beth’s blog, Tasty Yummies in the beginning of this year through a fellow blogger. I so fell in love with Beth and her personality–if you are lucky to get a comment from her, you will know that it quickly becomes one of your favorite things to read because it is so thoughtful and encouraging. She is super passionate about what she blogs about (food!) and her spirit is nothing short of contagious. She might even get you to throw those yoga pants on and get to a yoga class…

Hi guys, I’m Beth, the yoga-obsessed, graphic designer/illustrator behind Tasty Yummies! First off, I am so honored to be posting here at Fork & Beans, when Cara wrote asking if I would share a recipe for
her People You Should know series I was so delighted. Fork & Beans is one of my absolute favorites. Cara is insanely inspiring, oozing with personality and you quickly feel like you have known her forever, by just reading a few of her posts and chatting with her through comments. Cara is refreshingly honest and open and I really admire that. It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know Cara through each other’s blogs, I feel so blessed that our paths have crossed.

I am so passionate about food and cooking that I find it hard to talk about me, my blog and my food in a short concise way, so I will do my best to give you a brief introduction. Tasty Yummies focuses on whole, fresh and unprocessed foods. All of my recipes are gluten- free and many are also vegan. Although I have been gluten-free for 7 years, over 2 years ago I made a huge life change to cut out processed foods, refined sugars and other yucky things from my diet that didn’t serve me. Throughout this journey I dropped 30lbs, I became consumed by yoga and I found a newly energized, healthier version of me.

When it comes to food, I love having fun with my recipes, making things that anyone would enjoy, no matter if they have food allergies, intolerances, restrictions or not. I love the challenge of making delicious, humble dishes that anyone would eat with enjoyment and with a clean plate, look up at me in amazement when I tell them it was gluten-free and vegan.

I like fuss-free seasonal foods that don’t require a long list of hard-to-find ingredients that you’ve never heard of and I cook using fresh, seasonal, local and organic ingredients whenever possible. I have really come to embrace the idea of listening to your own body and what is right for you. What is right isn’t the same for every person and once you can start taking cues from what your own body is trying to tell you, you and your body will be so much happier.

These Sloppy Joes are so representative of my views on food. I like to have fun, but still keep it smart and healthy. I love re-imagining classic comfort foods, in a new way. My meat-eating hubby loves this recipe and asks for it every week. When I had made these to take photos for this post, a good friend of ours stopped by and I offered him a sloppy joe sandwich, he said he wasn’t hungry since he had a steak a few hours before. He then went on to say he’d like to try it, but he may only eat a bite or two and that I shouldn’t be offended. A few minutes later, we looked down at his plate and the sandwich was totally gone, every last bit. Nothing makes me happier that to feed someone and leave them happy and shocked that what they ate was gluten-free and vegan.

These Sloppy Joes are loaded with amazing comforting flavors and have a nice little hint of heat from the sriracha sauce. I also love the additional flavor from the liquid smoke, it gives the sandwich that delicious open-pit BBQ flavor. If you are soy-free or try to avoid soy, you could make these Sloppy Joes with cooked lentils or chopped up cooked portobello mushrooms instead of the TVP. I myself eat very little soy, but this dish is something I always make an exception for.

I served the Sloppy Joes with a delicious kohlrabi slaw with cranberries and walnuts, on the side. Head on over to Tasty Yummies to get that recipe and many others. You can also find Tasty Yummies on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TastyYummies, you can also find me on Twitter at @herobeth.

Thank you so much Cara for asking me to post and thank you to anyone that travels over to Tasty Yummies to look around, comment, drool or whatever else.

Sloppy Joes – Gluten-free + Vegan
Makes 6-8 servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion (or 1/2 of a large), diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 cups textured vegetable protein TVP – (see above for other suggestions
instead of TVP)
1 28-ounce can of organic crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup organic tomato paste
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (make sure it is gluten-free and vegan)
1-2 teaspoons sriracha sauce (optional)
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 tablespoon stoneground or wholegrain mustard

1 tablespoon maple sugar (brown sugar or any other sugar of your choice)
3/4 – 1 cup water (you may need a little more if it is too thick)
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in large sauté pan over a medium heat. Add diced onion,
green bell pepper and garlic, sauté for 5 to 8 minutes.

Add the TVP, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce,
sriracha sauce, liquid smoke, mustard, maple sugar, 3/4 cup of water, salt
and pepper to the sauté pan. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for 40 –
45 minutes. Stirring often. You may find you want to add more water if it
seems too thick. Serve on gluten-free/vegan hamburger rolls.