Circling Through This Life

I dusted off this old recipe ~ so old that my 3x5 index card is yellowed with age! and made this for our church potluck.  I made enough to take to church and another pan to leave at home for us for tonight. Here’s the original recipe (which I got from my mother-in-law, I think!)ingredients in {} are my additions 16 oz. cooked shell macaroni {I prefer shells because they are pretty but elbows work} 12 oz. sour cream {Do NOT skimp on the sour cream!} 2 lb. hamburger {I used half hamburger, and 1/2 Italian sausage} 1 large onion {I used 1 med}chopped {1 med. green bell pepper, chopped} 32 oz. Spaghetti sauce {home made would be awesome! The recipe said Ragu but I used what was on sale.  Also I used more like 52ish oz.. two of the 24-26oz size cans. We like it “saucier” than the recipe says {1/2- 3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese} 16 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese 3-4 tsp. oregano {3-4 tsp. basil} Salt and Pepper to taste Mix shells with sour cream and se...

I never seem to follow a recipe exactly but instead take a bit of this and little of that and throw it all together.  This week I want to share my variation of Crock Pot Hungarian Goulash.  The original recipe came from the Complete Slow Cooker Cookbook by Carol Hedding and is titled “Hungarian-Style Goulash”  It is described as a stew.   I think of it as more of a saucy dish served over noodles, but Ms. Hedding’s version is more like a broth with chunks of meat and vegetables. If I created her recipe, I would be tempted to put the noodles in the crock pot or to put the noodles in a bowl and ladle the Goulash. But here is “Tess’s Hungarian-Style Goulash” What you need: 2 pounds of beef such as cheap roast or round steak or stewing meat, trimmed and cubed 2-3 medium onions thinly sliced (Ms. Hedding’s variation said 6 onions.  That’s too much for my husband <grin>) 2 cups slicked mushrooms (I used regular white but portobello appears in some v...