When the spooks have a midnight jamboree,  they break it up with fiendish glee. Let’s make Spooky Joes for you and me!

Spooky Joes are a long standing Halloween supper tradition. Every Hallows Eve, I look forward to having this sloppy delight, it really brings out my inner child. Sure, they are only sloppy joes with a halloween-ish name. However, topping each sandwich with a spooky cheese slice gives them the Halloween spirit they need to fuel your little ghouls and goblins for trick-or-treating.

Spooky Joes

1 lb. 80/20 ground beef 

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp garlic powder

½ cup Christmas Relish 

2 TBSP spicy brown mustard

½ cup tomato ketchup

Salt and pepper to taste

Cheese slices of choice

Hamburger buns of choice

In a large pan or skillet, add the ground beef or chuck and cook on medium high heat. While the meat is browning, add the onion powder and garlic powder. Continue to cook the meat until it is cooked through and completely browned. 

Turn the heat down to medium and add the spicy brown mustard, ketchup and relish. Stir to combine and cook until the mixture starts to bubble. Cook on medium low heat to thicken. 

While the Spooky Joes are cooking, prepare the cheese slices by cutting them into your favorite spooky shapes. I use my favorite Halloween cookie cutters to make this process a breeze. 

Once the Spooky Joes have thickened, salt and pepper to taste. Warm your burger buns if desired and assemble your Spooky Joes. Enjoy with your favorite sides, my inner child loves tater tots. 

*Notes:

For the cheese, you can use any deli cheese you prefer. Some of my favorites are Cooper Sharp American cheese, Muenster and Cheddar cheese.

If you didn’t end up making my recipe for Christmas Relish, you can simply substitute pickle relish instead or just omit it all together. In place of the relish you can also cook a small diced onion and bell pepper when you are cooking the ground beef. The cooked onion and pepper will give you the same taste that the pickle relish would have.

Not a fan of ground beef, simply substitute with ground turkey or chicken. Just add a tablespoon of olive oil or butter into the pan when cooking the meat. The ground poultry will need the extra fats to prevent them from sticking to the since they are a leaner meat.