Day 19: Goulash and the mall

Super picky Ronan actually likes the Banana Pumpkin Bread!! I was giddy when he said he'd try it, but I didn't expect him to actually like it! Woohoo!!

Ronan and I went to see the free movie at the mall with Alicia and her kids today. We were super good and didn't buy anything else while we were there, even though the pretzel place was calling to me. (Side note: I think this whole thing is helping me lose weight, and I'm not even trying.. wonder why?)

On to food.. We're all out of frozen chicken breasts, so I'm moving on to the frozen ground beef. I told myself I'd use all the frozen meat before I considered buying meat this month. Tonight's dinner was Goulash. I'm typing out the recipe for all of you, but there's a little problem. My spices change every time I make it and I just spice to taste, so I have no idea how much I actually add. If you don't like the spices I have listed, go with whatever sounds good to you!

Kerry's Goulash (an original!)

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (or ground turkey or ground fake meat.. just ground something)
2 big cans of Diced Tomatoes
1 can Tomato Paste
1 lb pasta (you pick a shape)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
Onion (chopped)
Garlic (chopped, minced, whatever)
Spices, in order from most to least: Cumin, Basil, Adobo w/ Cumin (the one with a green top), Chili Powder, Paprika, Seasoned Salt and Garlic Powder. Be careful with the Adobo and Seasoned Salt as it's easy to make the whole thing too salty when using Adobo.

1. Put a LARGE pot of water on to boil. This pot is too big for the 1 lb of pasta, but you'll use it again later so save yourself some dishes.
2. In a frying pan begin cooking the onion and garlic in a little olive oil.
3, When the water is boiling, add pasta. Cook until it's done, then drain. Leave the pasta in the colander for now.
4. When the onion is cooked, add the ground beef. I usually add some spices to the beef while it's cooking.
5. After the beef is browned, drain the fat.
6. Go back to your large pot. It should be empty now because the pasta is still sitting in the colander. Pour the 2 cans of diced tomatoes and the can of tomato paste in the pot.
7. Add the beef/onion mix. Stir.
8. Add as much pasta as you can get to fit. (This is why I said use a big pot, lol!)
9. Cook on medium to low heat until it's all hot. I usually taste and add more spices here.

Tada! Eat!!