"Goulash"

It galls me to call this goulash, because it isn't...not in the original sense, anyway. But I lack a better name for it, and many, many Americans are familiar with this comforting "goulash", so I slap on some quotation marks and let it be.

This is such a simple dish, and I'm sure most of you already know how to make it, but I'll share it here because I use this blog to fill my children's Heritage Cookbooks as well, and they adore "goulash".

My parentheses keys aren't working, so * will be used.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey or beef

1 large onion, chopped

3 15 oz. jars diced tomatoes, with juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 stick of butter

1 pound of macaroni or preferred pasta

Directions:

When using turkey, I brown it with a drizzle of olive oil because it lacks the fat content of beef. I also add a splash of lemon juice to help break the meat down because we don't like big chunks. This also freshens the flavor some.

1. Brown turkey in a large pot. Sprinkle in some poultry seasoning for flavor.

2. Add onions and garlic. Cook until onions soften.

3. Pour in tomatoes. *I lightly puree most of them because some of us don't like those chunks either.*

4. Simmer 15-20 minutes to allow flavors to mingle. Meanwhile, cook your macaroni noodles to just under al dente *about 5 minutes*.

5. Add your stick of butter to the sauce. Melt and stir in.

6. Add pasta to the sauce. Bring to boil. Simmer until pasta is al dente or desired firmness.

Many "goulash" purists would not add garlic or other seasonings, and most probably wouldn't sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese to serve, but I am not a purist. I like more flavor.