No Sugar Turkey Sloppy Joes

After realizing I had basically no ingredients to prepare any of the ground turkey recipes I googled, I decided to try my hand at sloppy joes.  I might be the only person in America who has never actually had sloppy joes, but they've always looked pretty good.  MKG has had plenty of sloppy joes and was slurping up the juice.  S also enjoyed them.  Once again, super easy and super fast.  I even managed to make most of it one-armed, as S is teething pretty badly and wailed every time I put her down. 

No Sugar Turkey Sloppy Joes
1, to 1 1/4 lbs ground turkey
1 cup ketchup (I used my homemade version but I hear WF has no sugar ketchup)
1 can diced tomatoes and juice
2 tbsp Worcestershire
3 tsp yellow mustard
2 tbsp raspberry balsamic vinegar
S&P to taste

Most Sloppy Joe recipes call for a few key ingredients.  Ketchup/tomato sauce/paste, onion, and vinegar.  Then there are varying degrees of sugar and/or barbecue sauce, or even grape jelly.  I didn't want to use conventional ketchup and also did not want to use any sugar, so instead of regular vinegar, why not raspberry balsamic?!  It worked out GREAT!  I would definitely recommend it in place of sugar.  If you have an onion, by all means, dice it up and brown it in your saute pan, then adding in the ground turkey.  Once the turkey is browned (I poured some of the fat out, I don't like how the grease looks in the bowl!) add in your ketchup, diced tomatoes with juice, mustard, worst, balsamic, and salt and pepper.  Make sure the seasonings are to your liking, and add more liquids if you desire.  Then bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced and thickened.  By now, we are so accustomed to breadless meals that we really don't miss buns at all, and happily, this is a great meal in a bowl.  I threw in some spinach at the last minute to bulk it up a bit, or you could serve this over a bed of lettuce.

GFG has been having a tough couple of weeks.  I am trying to roll with the punches and maintain good spirits and stay positive, and remind myself that things always have a way of working themselves out.  I am a control freak though, and nothing scares me more than the unknown.  I think of what's going to happen and obsess over how things are going to play out, creating endless scenarios in my head.  I think too much.  I've always been jealous of people who just are.  There are just a few too many unknowns for this crazy-lady to handle right now, and I am having a difficult time managing.  But then I think, gosh if my problems I'm having right now are the worst I'll ever have, then I have ZERO to complain about.  Based on the fact that I actually am spending time writing about sloppy joes, I'd have to say I can't be doing too bad.  I guess that's what I truly love about cooking and nutrition.  How it can transcend a bad day, a bad week, a bad month, bad whatever.  You can control the ingredients and cooking preparation and create something totally original and unique and be proud of it.  Even better when it's good for you.  That's pretty cool, and I feel a lot of gratitude that I found something I love that is so rewarding for me.  I hope it's that way for you too!  Have a great weekend, XoXoGFG