So far today has been pretty awesome.  It’s been filled with warm blankets, Bones on DVD and the crocheting of a hat.  And some goulash–the recipe of which I think I have FINALLY cracked.

See, as a kid my dad would make this stuff that he called goulash.  It’s made with ground beef, elbow macaroni, peppers, a bunch of spices and tomato sauce and oh MAN it is super tasty.  He wouldn’t make it very often, but I remember always being glad to see it show up.

Unfortunately, my Dad and I do not have a good relationship.  I don’t think we ever really did, really but that is neither here nor there.  The point is that, I have been trying for years (years) to figure out his goulash recipe for myself and I can’t exactly call him up and say “hey, how did you make that stuff?”

But tonight I think I finally cracked it.  It is definitely the closest that I have ever come to the taste I remember enjoying as a kid.  And this makes me super happy. Because this stuff is a perfect cold fall/winter evening food.

Here’s how I made it.

You will need:

One big pot

One big frying pan

A working stove

Ingredients:

• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 white onion
• Couple cloves of garlic
• Packet of Taco spice
• 1 small can tomato sauce (80z)
• Salt
• Pepper
• Oregano
• Basil
• Cumin
• Chili Pepper
• Ketchup (which seems superfluous since you’re using tomato sauce as well but trust me on this)
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 package large elbow macaroni

Steps:

1.  Chop up the bell peppers and onion and then set them aside.  I just toss them into a big bowl all together because that means less dishes to wash at clean up time.

2. Smash then chop garlic cloves and add to the bowl (or whatever you’re using) of chopped up  peppers and onion.

3. Put water into your big pot to boil (for the macaroni)

4.  In your big frying pan brown your ground beef and drain the excess fat.  Return the pan to the burner.

5.  Dump your whole bowl of peppers, onion and garlic in with the ground beef and stir.

6.  Add the taco spice and the can of tomato sauce and some water and stir it all up until it’s well blended and reduce the heat on your burner to low/medium.

Right about now your water should be boiling so go ahead and dump the macaroni in there and cook according to the instructions on the package.

7.  From here add in your spices to taste.   I find that I really need to shake in a bunch of extra oregano and pepper, and just a normal amount of salt, basil, chili powder and cumin. Squirt in some ketchup to add some extra tomato-y taste to your “sauce.”  This saves you from having to open a second can of tomato sauce.

Keep your burner on low and let all of the flavors cook in together while the macaroni finishes cooking.

Drain the macaroni and return it immediately to the pot and return the pot to the stove and turn your burner to low.  Pour the mixture in your frying pan into the pot with the macaroni and stir it all together.

Cover the pot, but leave a little bit of air for the steam to escape and let it burble on low for a half an hour or so, stirring occasionally so that the macaroni won’t stick to the bottom of the pot.  You might add in a little bit of extra water, but it isn’t really necessary.

After the half an hour goes by, ladle some onto a plate and eat! Yummmmmm.

This recipe will probably work equally well in a crock pot, but I haven’t tested it out yet.

Will had THREE helpings and is now writhing in pain because he didn’t stop to consider the way that pasta expands in your stomach when you eat it.

Man, just typing all of that out made me want more.  I’m so glad there is some left over!