Not Just Your Average Joe

My boyfriend surprised me the other day with a brand new cookbook from the Nettle Creek School PTO titled, “50 Years of Fox Family Favorites.” Like other community cookbooks, it is very sweetly compiled with many recipes contributed by the teachers, parents, students, administration, school board and community that make up Nettle Creek District 24C. I love these type of cookbooks because they give a person a chance to peek inside a community that one may never have a chance to visit. It’s a wonderful example of how food is a universal language that can connect people from all over the country as well as the world.
I was eager to test out several of the recipes when I peeked inside, but my BF had a special request—he wanted me to make the Jurak Joes. These are basically a variation of your traditional “sloppy Joe” sandwich, named after the author of the recipe, Laura Jurak.
So, guess what we had for dinner on Thursday night?
This was probably one of the easiest and quickest meals I’ve prepared in awhile not to mention quite tasty. I cut back on the brown sugar and the taste was still on the sweet side. We ate these on toasted buns with plenty of accouterments for me, like shredded carrots, tomatoes, pickles and lettuce. My boyfriend doesn’t like having all these extras on his Joe’s so he kept his simple with just a slice of Havarti cheese.
Whichever way you decide to eat your Jurak Joe’s, I’m positive you will enjoy every bite.
Jurak Joes by Laura Jurak
3 lbs ground beef (I used extra lean)
1 onion (I omitted this)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (I used 1/4 cup)
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 and 1/4 cup tomato ketchup
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp soy sauce

Brown the ground beef in a large skillet and drain all the fat. Add all the other ingredients and heat thoroughly. Serve on hamburger buns, eat and enjoy!