Monday, August 25, 2014

The Confession: My Name Is Lily and I Like Fancy Sloppy Joes

Hello LilyOnTheLam.Com Readers:

Happy Monday!  To start this week off right, I am declaring today "New Product Wednesday on a Monday."  It's like Christmas in August, people!

I am back from a week in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina where I worked my arse off round the clock for my job and any free time I had was filled with sleep, Southern food and cocktails.  The one week felt like sixteen weeks and I am very glad to be home in Florida.

A few weeks back, Ms. Wrigleyville and I had been shopping at one of my favorite stores in the world: Cost Plus World Market.  We do not have one in Tampa Bay, so I must make a pilgrimage any time I want to go for some low cost "world goods."  On this particular trip, I slipped something into the shopping cart trying to be "discreet."  I might as well have had a Polish tuba band behind me with banners saying "What is Lily doing?" as I tried to be "discreet."  Ms. Wrigleyville caught my not-so-sly, not-so-ninjaesque movements and said "What are you putting in your cart?"  BUSTED!

I threw up my hands and said "OK now listen, DON'T JUDGE ME!"  Which I think is pretty much the international way of saying "I am pathetic, judge away!"

In my cart, I had put a spice/sauce packet for ...


Red Fork Brand "Best Sloppy Joe Skillet Sauce with roasted tomato and garlic."  My name is Lily and I like fancy Sloppy Joes. 

In my defense, I have to say that naming something "Best Sloppy Joe" is really a teaser that no mortal even with superhuman strength could turn down.  I mean, who wouldn't want to see if this truly was the BEST Sloppy Joe ever?  

And my point is proven, because Ms. Wrigleyville didn't judge me.  Instead she asked me which aisle I procured this packet of nirvana and she promptly ran over and grabbed one for herself.  Proving once again why we are friends.

Now let me tell you how I am with sauce packets and spice mixes.  Whether at home or abroad, I love to buy seasonings.  I then put them in my cupboard, forget all about them and then five to ten years from now throw them out in a "ohh I forgot about these" sad moment.

But when something says "BEST Sloppy Joe," you can't just leave it lingering in the back of the pantry!

Side Note:  The unfortunate placement of the "H" key next to the "J" key on the laptop keyboard combined with my devastatingly unfortunate FAT FINGERS means that I keep initially typing "Sloppy Hoe" instead of "Sloppy Joe" which makes me laugh hysterically (I have the maturity of an 8 year old boy) and then I correct the typo and move on.

After a long business trip, I cleared my weekend schedule to do some serious recuperating.  I did make time to see Jamie Kennedy at Sidesplitters Comedy Club with friends and to volunteer at a local theater.  I had been wishing I had cancelled my volunteering because I was so tired and would rather just sit on my butt watching a mini-marathon of season one of Bravo TV's "Below Deck" television show.  

But once I was at the theater, I felt reinvigorated.  There were some local celebs at the show as well as some colorful characters and I enjoyed talking with them all.  Reinvigorating!  I know it is difficult to find time in one's schedule for all the things we need to do, but it was a good reminder to me that volunteering really does fuel my soul.  It is something I need to spend more time doing because not only do I pay forward the opportunities I have been given but it also nurtures me as well.

When I headed home, tired but happy; I remembered that package of Sloppy Joe mix and stopped at the store for ground Chuck, a large yellow onion, a large green bell pepper, a can of fire roasted tomatoes and a pack of Publix French Hamburger buns.  I'm not really sure what makes a hamburger bun "French" other than it has a funky carved, egg-washed top that sorta looks like a slashed baguette.  But I do know that they taste good and tend to hold up better than your typical hamburger bun.

The sauce mix was fragrant.  The ground beef-vegetable mixture smelled heavenly.  

I settled in to eat my "Fancy Sloppy Joe" while watching the new "To Be Takei" George Takei documentary on iTunes, which I highly recommend.  Apparently right now the movie is only in 1 theater in the country -- in Manhattan, so I appreciated being able to watch it on iTunes.  Thank you, Apple!


The Fancy Sloppy Joe was good.  A little on the sweet side.  I added cayenne pepper and alder wood smoked sea salt to balance out the sugary taste.  While I enjoyed the sauce mix, I probably could have replicated the same flavor with less sugar by using some tomato paste and garlic.  But for ease of use, the sauce packet was great.

So Fancy Sloppy Joe:  B+.  The George Takei documentary: A+++++++++++.

Happy Monday!   

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