Hamburger meat, tomatoes, onions, garlic and pasta – it’s really a match made in heaven.  I tend to get in a groove of making similar tasting foods and my wife is the first person to openly and honestly inform me of this.  So I quickly searched google for recipes with hamburger meat and then Goulash came into view.  Thinking about my audience – my wife that loves a lot of meat, my two and a half year old daughter who adores pasta, and me who likes anything as long as it’s tasty – it was on.  I declared it was Goulash night.  First I got all my goulash ingredients together:

I declare this goulash night

Then I browned the meats (ground beef and ground turkey), spooned off some of the grease, added the onion and bell pepper, cooked that for 5 minutes, added the garlic and spices (basil, oregano, soy sauce, bay leaves, garlic powder, salt and pepper), cooked that for a few minutes, added the tomatoes and water brought it to a boil and reduced to a simmer.  Covered it and cooked it for about 30-40 minutes.  Then I tasted, seasoned more, added some elbow pasta and covered again for 15 minutes took it off the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes.

I also sliced a loaf of garlic bread in half length wise, brushed it with melted butter, sprinkled it with garlic powder, salt and pepper and broiled it for about 5 minutes – till slightly browned.  Easy and good.

Then cut up some tomatoes and cucumbers and put them in a ziplock bag with 1/2 cup of creamy blue cheese dressing, 1/8 cup of white and sherry vinegar, and 1/4 cup olive oil.  Seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and a tsp. of thai red chili sauce. Shook it up and put it in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to marinate and chill.

Results: Both my babies liked it and that makes me happy.

Please tell me about you’re goulash recipes, variations…