Goulash with Spätzle

I was talking about making this on the other blog and thought while I was in blogger and while it was relatively fresh in my mind I should post the recipe.

Goulash

- 2lb of stew beef chunks
- 1/4c flour combined with ground pepper and a teaspoon of (hungarian) paprika
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 onions, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 -2 tbsp of paprika (depends if you are using spice and how you like it) - to make the flavour more complex you could also add a tsp each of ground caraway seeds, majoram, and thyme - I didn't have any on hand but the thyme but those flavours were seen in various online recipes I used for inspiration.
- 3 tbsp of tomato paste
- 4 c of veggie broth

Toss the beef in the flour mix and brown in a large saute pan with 1 tbsp of olive oil - 5 to 10 minutes, work in batches as need be. Remove and set aside.
Saute onions and garlic on medium in rest of olive oil until just turning golden.
Add paprika, saute one more minute
Add tomato paste and veggie broth, deglazing the pan.
Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and leave stirring occationally for 1 1/2 hours. I left it uncovered to thicken it.

Spätzle

Combine 2 eggs and a cup of milk.
Add to 2 c of flour (cut with a dash of salt)
Mix adding milk as needed to make it like pancake batter.

Run through the spätzle maker into a big pot of boiling water. If you don't have one, try slowly pouring the runny mixture through a collinder with biggish holes while shaking it gentle to make the droplets seperate.

Cook for 2 or 3 minutes (they will float to the surface so work fast or in batches). Drain and toss with 1 tbsp of butter.

Serve the goulash on the spätzle (or beside since the spätzle tastes really good on its own with a bit of salt).

This made enough for two dinner portions (the picture below is on side plates not dinner plates) and two large lunches.

Tomato Olive Beef

Training season is about to begin which means it's time to pull out the slow cooker - cooking hearty, healthy food is a must when you're working out (and the rest of the time) and having vast amounts of left overs is very handy when you're spending more time on the bike, in the pool or on the run than you are at home.

The first time I made this it rocked! I have a batch slow cooking away right now and I'm hoping it's as good as my first effort.

Tomato Olive Beef

From the Company's Coming Slow Cooker Dinners

28oz can of diced tomatoes (with juice)

1.5 cups thinly sliced red onion

2 fresh chilies, seeds and ribs removed *

1/3 cup tomato paste

1/4 cup dry red wine

1 tbsp chili powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 lbs (900g) beef stew meat

6 bacon slices, cooked crisp & crumbled

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

6 Kalamata olives, pitted & chopped**

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Combine first 8 ingredients in 3.5 to 4 liter slow cooker. Add beef and bacon. Stir well. Cook on Low for 8 to 10 hours or on High for 4 to 5 hours.

Add basil. Stir well. Remove to large serving bowl. Scatter olives and pine nuts over top.

Serves 8.

* leave the seeds in for a spicier dish

** I LOVE olives so I include at least 6 per person

Spaghetti and meatballs

So I haven't progressed to making my own pasta (yet) so this should be titled "Meatballs (to have with your spaghetti) with optional sauce (you can just use stuff from a jar if you choose)" but that's a REALLY long title.

We were so eager to eat I forgot to take a picture. This was Brian's lunch the next day.

A few years back I set out on a mission to make The Best Meatballs EVER. I had some ideas at the beginning: I wanted to make them small not giant and something more then just meat in ball form. But that was it. So I pulled up a bunch of meatball recipes and started testing. A bit from this one. A bit from that one. And after a while I got the hang of it. And I've settled on a recipe that gets raves from my friends. It feels good to hear: "I love your meatballs!" or "You're making meatballs? can I come over for dinner??" So I think I've done it. And here it is in all it's glory: Amy's Meatballs (with optional sauce instructions).

Meatballs:

Combine the following in a large bowl. Get your hands in there (wash them first) and work that egg and dry stuff into that beef.

1-2 lbs of extra lean ground beef
1/4 cup of finely chopped onion
~2/3 cup bread crumbs per pound of beef
1 cup of fresh grated parmasen or romano cheese (must be fresh... none of that dry stuff from a shaker)
1 egg per pound of beef
1-2 cloves of garlic
generous teaspoon of each oregano and basil
a few twists of the pepper and salt mills

If the mixture seems too dry (sometimes the bread crumbs can dry it out) add a splash of milk.

Form the beef mixture into balls, rolling them between your hands to make them firm. I make them just less than an inch in diameter. Bite size. This makes lots! Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (so they don't stick after). They don't spread like cookies but keep them seperated. This stages is referred to as the Meat Cookie stage. Bake for 10 - 15 min at 350F.

Add the balls to finished sauce and let simmer for 20 minutes (at least).

Optional Sauce Hints

So you can take the easy road and get your favorite basic tomato and basil tomato sauce. But I find jarred sauces just not right so I usually start with a good quality basic tomato sauce from an Italian delicatessen or bakery (the kind that comes in a skinny jar) and fine tune it.

Start by sauting 1-2 cloves of garlic in olive oil add a few tablespoons of finely chopped onion (you can set some aside when you make the meatballs for this).

Add a large can of crushed tomatos or a jar or two of that basic tomato sauce.

Season with basil (and oregano if you so choose).

Allow to simmer stirring occasionally for 30 minutes.

If it's too runny you can add some tomato paste.

Give it a few twists of the pepper and salt mills.

Taste it. Aciddy? yeah... add a pinch of brown sugar. Stir well. Taste again. Repeat adding a small amount of sugar. Shouldn't need more then two pinches depending of the volume of sauce and the type of tomatoes and your own taste buds.

And here's my last hint: Make the sauce the day before and allow to cool and sit in the fridge over night and then reheat when you make the meatballs.