Deluxe Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes with Bacon, Peppers & Fontina

 

After seeing a few of these ideas to make cheesesteak-style sloppy joes pop up on Pinterest, I decided to try my own hand at making this delicious sounding, intriguing concoction! We have a “not-so-good” – – understatement! — Italian restaurant nearby that actually had very good Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches when they first opened.

Then…you guessed it. They slid down hill faster than a bobsled team when they wanted to get rich and “out of the red” in record-breaking Olympic time and they sadly cut back on quality and upped the prices.

They then about poisoned my hubby by serving him a sandwich with spoiled meat on it, refusing to admit it was bad, and didn’t even give him his money back.

Needless to say, that was our last order. Wrong way to achieve a lasting business. 

But, the one specialty cheesesteak sandwich they had included chopped bacon in the meat, and really added a nice boost of flavor! I know, right? Bacon?? Adding extra flavor?! Surely I jest! 😉

So that was, without a doubt, definitely making the cut for this new endeavor! Something, knowing me and my love for bacon, I probably would’ve added anyways! 😉  

After checking out a few of these recipes though, I noticed that they were all pretty much exactly alike, and sounded, well, a bit boring. Not being a food snob, or knocking anyone’s recipe, just being plain honest.

Canned beef broth, hamburger, and flour needed more. A lot more.  

 

 

So besides upping the flavor with bacon, I set out to create something that had a bit of a “wow” factor to it, but not straying so far that what it was meant to be, “cheesesteak”, was lost.

So I used a blend of part ground beef and part mild Italian sausage, added extra flavors and seasonings, and topped them with oven-roasted bell peppers! 

I wanted to add even more extra fun and change up the cheese a bit, too. To me, mozzarella is a very mild, bland cheese, though I LOVE it, don’t get me wrong!, I’m an admitted cheeseaholic!, I wanted something with a stronger flavor, something that would melt nicely, and yet not be too overpowering or pungent.

So my cheese of choice was fontina! Just a mild Danish fontina that worked beautifully! 

Lastly, it’s so much better to always take the extra step of at least toasting the insides of the buns. I took it a step further even, and spread the insides with garlic butter before toasting. Good move. 😉 I don’t think they’d even be the same if I hadn’t! 😀

All in all, it was quite a tasty sandwich! 

The final product was just what I had hoped for! Lots of extra flavor but not too over the top! “Just right”. 😉

My husband absolutely LOVED them! He enjoyed them even more than regular sloppy joes, so I’m very sure these will be made on a regular basis! 😉  

I hope that these make it to your table soon, too! 😀 Take care and have a fun day! 🙂  

 

 

DELUXE PHILLY CHEESESTEAK SLOPPY JOES

Makes 4-5

 

1/2 lb. lean ground beef

1/2 lb. mild Italian ground sausage, (*can sub ground beef if preferred, but you will lose the extra flavor and seasonings from the sausage)

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 tsp. coarse ground black pepper

2 Tbl. butter

5 strips quality thick-sliced lean bacon, cooked crisp and snipped into 1/2″ pieces

2 tsp. A-1 Steak Sauce

1/2 tsp. worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp. more coarse ground black pepper, or to taste

2 Tbl. flour

2 tsp. Superior Touch Better Than Bouillon Beef Base dissolved in 1 1/2 cups boiling water

1 small red bell pepper, cleaned out and sliced into 10-12 rings, roasted

1 small green bell pepper, cleaned out and sliced into 10-12 rings, roasted

2 lightly packed cups shredded fontina cheese

5-6 hamburger buns

5-6 Tbl. melted butter

5-6 tsp. minced garlic

 

DIRECTIONS: 

In large deep frying pan with lid, sauté ground beef, sausage, onion, garlic and pepper until meat is done, breaking up into small pieces as you go. Drain grease well.

Add butter, bacon, steak sauce, worcestershire and more pepper. Stir to mix. Stir in flour and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring, to cook out “raw flour” taste. 

Slowly stir in the 1 1/2 cups beef bouillon. Heat to a simmer, and simmer for several minutes until thickened, stirring. Remove from heat and cover. 

Heat oven to broil.

Melt second amount of butter and garlic in small dish in microwave.

On foil-lined baking sheet, open buns and place all, cut side-up, onto sheet. Brush cut sides with melted garlic butter evenly. Toast under broiler until lightly toasted. WATCH so that they don’t burn! Only takes 1-2 minutes!

Remove from oven and remove all top buns. (Set those aside.) Top all bottoms evenly with meat mixture. Top each with pepper rings and pile on the cheese! 

Broil again, watching closely, until cheese has melted. (*Another 1-2 minutes.) Place on tops and serve! 

*To roast pepper rings: Place onto foil-lined baking sheet and bake in 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove and set aside. **Time depends on thickness of slices and desired doneness. Start watching after 10 minutes.