Storm Warning! Bread ✔ Milk ✔ Eggs ✔...Crock Pot Recipe ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Those of us in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast are about to get hit with the first storm of the season! It won't be our biggest, but 12"-18" is enough to keep us busy. The grocery isles are packed with people who, I think, were actually a little excited. As I fought the crowds at the store yesterday, I couldn't help but notice the contents of their carts. It is clear that during snow storms we gravitate towards comfort foods and ignore the remaining New Year's resolutions! Potato chips, pretzels, cookies, brownie mix and toilet paper were in 90% of the carts. Not additional comments needed.

Snow storms are both inconvenient and productive at the same time. They do, for a short while, interrupt normal activities. But they also force families to reconnect by nesting and huddling together in a warm home. Like most mothers, I hated the wet gloves, boots and scarves by the front door,but I also enjoyed our time inside baking brownies and watching movies.

The man of our house worked in health care and had to be at the hospital during storms, so it was up to the boys and I to keep the driveway and sidewalks clean. It was a chore to be sure. But the best part was coming in to the smell of Sloppy Joe's cooking in the crock pot. It was an absolute family favorite. Snow days, were not the time to force healthy meals into my young snow clearing crew. Sloppy Joe's, chips and chicken soup was always the meal of the day! I used a recipe out of an old Family Circle magazine. The canned stuff does not even compare.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef (I usually used ground chicken).

1 (16-oz.) package ground pork sausage

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 medium-size green bell pepper, chopped

1 (8-oz.) can tomato sauce

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

8 hamburger buns, toasted (I usually used kaiser rolls because they held up better and I live in the Philadelphia area where we have the very best bread...just saying.)

Directions:

1. Brown beef and sausage with onion and bell pepper in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, stirring 10 minutes or until beef and sausage crumble and are no longer pink. Drain well.

2. Place beef mixture in a 4 1/2-qt. slow cooker. Stir in tomato sauce and next 9 ingredients. Cover and cook on HIGH 4 hours. Serve on hamburger buns or rolls. 

It is certain that everyone has their storm favorites. This is simply one of mine. Today, I have a HOA who will shovel and de-ice while I work in the basement on my latest project. And even though I once complained about all the wet outer gear in the hall, what I wouldn't give to see a pile of coats and melting snow at my front door. Enjoy it all!