Mini Sloppy Joe’s
SERVES 6

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INGREDIENTS: When I cater hors d'oeuvrs parties, this is one of the more popular morsels I offer. A Chef Kerry original! The most important thing is making sure the puff pastry is fully puffed (you'll know because there will be lots of air inside) You can simply use bottled BBQ sauce, but it's not quite the same. You may never eat a full sized burger again! 1 Sheet Puff Pastry 1# Ground Beef 1 Cup Ketchup 2 Tbs. Dijon Mustard 1 Tbs. Worcestershire Sauce ½ Cup Molasses 1/3 Cup Brown Sugar 2 Tbs. Cayenne Pepper 2 Cloves Garlic, peeled and minced 1 Tbs. Dried Thyme Freshly Ground Black Pepper Juice of ½ Lemon 2 Tbs. Canola Oil 3 Tbs. White Sesame Seeds

Method: Preheat oven to 400F. Allow puff pastry to thaw and lay flat on a cutting surface. With a 1” round pastry cutter, cut approximately 25 rounds from the sheet. Lay rounds ½” apart on a large baking sheet. Bake approximately 20 minutes until puffed and golden. Combine beef, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, molasses, sugar, cayenne, garlic, thyme, and pepper in a medium saucepan. Break up the beef with a wooden spoon and cook on medium high heat, stirring until the meat is thoroughly cooked and the excess moisture from the sauce has evaporated. If meat is too watery, press through a colander so the meat doesn't "run" out of the buns. With your fingers, split the puff pastry rounds through the middle. Place a little meat on the bottoms and place the tops back on to form a little sandwich. Brush each sandwich with canola oil and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve at room temperature.

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