Snobby Joes

by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
A dark piece of toast topped with a sloppy joe mixture and lots of fresh herbs on a white plate with a gray and purple leaf design.

Everyone loves Sloppy Joes! This version thinks it's better than everyone because it contains no meat. And there’s no soy, either. Lentils are the perfect texture for vegetarian Sloppy Joes.


Ingredients

1 cup green lentils (uncooked amount)
4 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
1 green, yellow, or red pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces tomato sauce
¼ cup tomato paste
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
4 buns


Instructions
  1. Put the lentils in a small sauce pot and pour in 4 cups water. Cover and bring to a boil.
  2. Once boiling, lower heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, until lentils are soft. Drain and set aside.
  3. About 10 minutes before the lentils are done boiling, preheat a medium soup pot over medium heat. Sauté the onion and pepper in the oil for about 7 minutes, until softened.
  4. Add the garlic and sauté a minute more. Add the cooked lentils, the chili powder, oregano and salt and mix. Add the tomato sauce and tomato paste. Cook for about 10 minutes.
  5. Add the maple syrup and mustard and heat through.
  6. Turn the heat off and let sit for about 10 minutes, so that the flavors can meld, or go ahead and eat immediately if you can’t wait.

Notes
  1. This recipe is another awesome creation of Jewish Veg supporter Isa Chandra Moskowitz of Post Punk Kitchen.