Recipe

These Sloppy AvocaJOES Will Take Your Avocado Addiction to a Whole New Level

By Erin Gresh at University of Pittsburgh

That's right. Don't be scared. It's time we expanded our avocado horizons beyond toast and guacamole. We owe it to these amazing little fruits (yes, they are in fact fruits) to make wonderful culinary creations with them. After all, they are SO healthy and tasty and barely require any additional effort to taste delicious.

While these Joes are insanely good, they are another thing: sloppy (they gotta live up to their name!). They're the I-feel-like-I-just-rolled-myself-in-guac, I-should-probably-get-a-napkin-but-I-can't-stop-eating kind of sloppy, and you'll love every minute of it. Unlike traditional sloppy Joes, however, these guys are made with ground turkey to put the spotlight on the true star of this dish: the avocado. This little change also makes this sandwich (dare I say) healthy! Turkey has a much lower fat-content than beef without compromising taste. And, the sauce is chock-full of healthy fats from the avocado and olive oil and is reminiscent of basil pesto with a creamy, avocado-y twist - 100% green gold guaranteed.

Sloppy AvocaJOES

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
Servings: 3

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey breast
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
3/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 ripe avocado
Juice 1/2 a lemon
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese plus more for topping
1 tsp onion powder
1 tomato
3-5 Kaiser Rolls

Kelly Gresh

Step 1

Gather all of your ingredients.

Kelly Gresh

Step 2

Give both the parsley and basil a good rinse.

Kelly Gresh

Step 3

Cook the ground turkey in a skillet on medium-high heat for 8-9 minutes or until the turkey is light in color and no pink is visible anymore. Then, take the skillet off the heat and set aside.

Kelly Gresh

Step 4

Finely chop the basil and parsley and set aside.

Kelly Gresh

Step 5

Measure out 1/2 cup of the chopped parsley, 1/2 cup of the chopped basil, and 3/4 cup of olive oil and put into a blender. Blend these three ingredients together for about 30 seconds or until the mixture has reached the consistency of a sauce.

Kelly Gresh

Step 6

Chop the three cloves of garlic into small pieces and set aside.

Kelly Gresh

Step 7

Cut the avocado into bite-sized pieces.

Kelly Gresh

Step 8

Blend the garlic and avocado together for about 15-20 seconds or until the mixture is uniform. (It's important that you blend only a few ingredients at a time like this so things don't get stuck in your blender :p).

Kelly Gresh

Step 9

Give the 1/2 lemon a good squeeze into the blender (watch for pesky pits).

Kelly Gresh

Step 10

Put 1/2 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and 1 tsp of onion powder into the blender.

Kelly Gresh

Step 11

Blend for about 10-15 seconds until the mixture is uniform once again.

Kelly Gresh

Step 12

Pour the sloppy avocajoe sauce into the skillet with the cooked ground turkey, stir everything together, then heat everything up on medium-low heat for 5 minutes.

Kelly Gresh

Step 13

Meanwhile, wash and slice a tomato.

Kelly Gresh

Step 14

Assemble your sloppy avocajoes: On a Kaiser roll, put a heaping spoonful of the sloppy avocajoe meat and keep going until the meat is overflowing out the sides of the roll - the sloppier, the better :). Then, top the meat off with a tablespoon of Parmigiano-Reggiano, a slice of tomato, and the other half of the Kaiser roll. Next, grab about 10 napkins and a bib and enjoy :)

Kelly Gresh