The menu plan didn’t go quite perfectly last week. So this week, I have a few “let’s try that one again” items.
Monday – I’m in the mood for goulash. Unfortunately, there are about a million recipes for goulash on the internet, and they’re so incredibly varied. I’m guessing that this is because what I’m thinking of as goulash isn’t really goulash. I just remember something they served at the camp I worked at as a teenager, which they called goulash, but was more like a tomato based beef/macaroni/cheddar cheese casserole. On most things, I’m pretty adventurous and don’t worry about silly little details like recipes, but I’ve tried goulash before, and we’ll just say . . . I should really follow a recipe on this one. I’m thinking of trying this one, but am a little scared since it doesn’t have any reviews yet. If you have a great recipe, please leave it in the comments.
Tuesday – Chicken breast in mushroom/sour cream sauce over pasta (didn’t make this last week)
Wednesday – Beef stroganoff
Thursday – Tortilla Soup
Friday – Out to Eat
Saturday – Homemade pizza (another one I didn’t make last week)
Sunday – Someone else is bringing dinner for homegroups.
Check out more menu plans at Orgjunkie.com.
Goulash from an old Betty Crocker book I make all the time. Super simple and tastes great. Makes enough for three healthy servings.
1# ground beef
1 can (14-15oz?) diced tomatoes w/juice
2-3 ribs celery-sliced
1/2 C ketchup or more*
salt/pepper
3/4C uncooked=1 1/2C cooked elbow mac*
Brown/crumble/drain gr. beef. Add everything but macaroni. Simmer for about 20-25 min. Add mac and heat through for about 10-15 min.
The recipe also calls for a small can of mushrooms. I don't really care for them so I leave them out.
*ketchup-I use more so it's not dry prob almost 3/4 to 1C
macaroni- I cook about 9 mins. so it doesn't get completely mushy.
Side story. Making this for dinner one night. DH comes into kitchen to see what gave it such a good flavor and was surprised when he saw ketchup!
1 lb browned and drained hamburger meat (cook it with a diced onion and some minced garlic for added flavor)
1 box or bag of elbow macaronni cooked and drained
1 can corn drained
1 small can tom sauce
1 can rotel undrained
salt and pepper to taste
Mix everything about into one large cooking pot and stir and heat until well blended.
Another great recipe is Indiana Chowder. Check it out on my blog here: http://fourcrazychildren.blogspot.com/2009/11/kims-indiana-chowder-recipe.html
I stumbled on your blog last night (from Time2Save) and have read quite a bit of it since. It absolutely resonates with me as a fellow slob. When my DD was 1YO, I did what you are doing now. She was so happy to play with whatever I was dragging out of the closet, or off the dresser that it was very easy to spend hours at a time decluttering. Unfortunately, I failed at one thing, and that was to get rid of the stuff I decided I no longer wanted. I failed to take a lot of it to Goodwill, I never had a yard sale. So, while I got rid of a lot of garbage, there are still a lot of "I don't want, but maybe someone does" kind of things still in my house. Not only that, but I find the process of decluttering and even maintaining much harder with a 3 YO than a 1 YO. (Like how I shifted blame there?) Nevertheless, my house is still benefiting from the work I did 2 years ago, and I could get back to that place easily. Your blog has provided me with much motivation and some good ideas. As you say, it still comes down to my focus. I too have tried to do laundry once a day & that doesn't work for me either. I think I'm going to recommit myself to this task, designating a laundry day, and doing something with the "stuff" instead of shuffling it around.
But one thing I wanted to say to you is that I hope you are very proud of yourself. I am bursting with pride for you as I read your journey. You seem to be making yourself a good steward of your time, and creating a pleasant home for the family God gave you without slipping into obsession mode and letting the housework become more important than it should be. Just as no one wants to live in a house with no clean socks & dishes piled high, no one wants to live with a woman who freaks over every crumb. You seem to be striking that balance very well. I don't even know how to express this – just know that you are doing a wonderful thing for yourself and your family that will improve their lives for the rest of their lives. If your children grow up in a functional home, they will grow up wanting to be in a functional home and with the knowledge of how to make that happen. This is just as important as anything else you have taught them (except Christ of course – He being the most important of all.)
The reason I commented on this one rather old post is because I have a wonderful goulash recipe that I wanted to share. I make mine within a few days of having cooked a roast, and I use that leftover meat. When I cook my roast, I make it yankee style on the stove in a dutch oven. I brown it all over, then add a can of cream of mushroom soup, some water, salt, pepper, and thyme. When I add the vegetables, I make sure to add one whole, peeled onion. I save all of the leftover gravy, cut up the leftover meat and the whole onion. Then I cook some elbow macaroni. Add to that, a large can of chopped tomatoes, some garlic powder & Italian seasoning to taste. Put all of that in a casserole dish & bake until bubbly. And then we sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. It's hands down better than any ground beef recipe I've ever tried, plus it's a great way to use leftover roast beef.
I'm off to go read some more of your blog, or maybe I should unload the dishwasher instead 🙂
Lisa from Hixson
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Wow…all the different recipes for goulash! I make two different kinds…one with pasta and one with rice.
Pasta version:
1 pound cooked ground beef seasoned with salt, pepper and onion
1 pound box/bag of pasta…cooked (I prefer shell macaroni)
2 cans light red kidney beans with liquid
tomato juice…or petite diced tomatoes…enough to make it a little soupy. Great with fresh bread and butter.
Rice version…
2 pounds ground beef (cooked as above)
4-6 cups cooked rice
2 large cans stewed tomatoes, chopped up
2-3 cups tomato juice
Also great with fresh bread and butter (gluten free bread sucks so I use Glutino table crackers with butter now…NOT as good)
You can also do what my mother has always called Spanish Rice
1 pound bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
about 4 cups cooked rice
2 cans light red kidney beans
tomato juice to make a little soupy.
This tastes even better the next day.
These are all great recipes. Like Kristy above, I also use it with rice or pasta. I make it either Mexican style with some chile powder or Italian with Italian spice mix. Use different types of cheeses, add some olives or not, corn or not. Instead of Goulash, I call it “Slop-a-Roni.” I don’t really have a recipe and just use whatever I seasonings I feel like and whichever is handier, rice or pasta.
Of all the things I’ve been learning from this blog (very late to the party here) I think the most shocking might be to discover goulash can have pasta in it?! I had to google and discovered American Goulash recipes. I won’t be trying it, but… Mind. Blown.
(I’m loving the blog – started at the beginning and wending my way through in chunks)