Hey there friends. It’s been a hot minute, hasn’t it? Truth is, I’ve missed this silly little blog. Life has been a tad on the serious side lately, and being a not very serious person (seriously, one time I had a blind date that told me I had no depth, he got that all out of a 2 hour meeting – perceptive that one!), I decided to step back from the good ole creative (or lack thereof) juices flowing through my brain!

Just an update – my dad is out of the hospital (woo hoo) but he’s not out of the woods (boo!) and that’s all I’m going to say about that. Some things are best left on the inside, ya know. Kind of like babies – you get all uncomfortable in that 9th month and think “man, get this damn kid out of me” then the damn kid comes out of you, you are responsible for everything about it/him/her, and you think “man, get this kid back inside of me”. Just me? Ok, then, moving on…

I got all my hair chopped off the other day. It was about halfway down my back and I took it to just touching my shoulders. Quite a difference. I left the salon feeling beautiful and free. My hairdresser does such a great job. She even gave me some tricks to style it myself. So, 3 days of styling it myself later, I have a message in to her to set up a time to fix whatever the hell I’ve created. Let me tell you, it ain’t pretty. I look like a fluffed out, giant mushroom head. The humidity on the southeast coast and my hair are not what you would call on friendly terms. They are straight up enemies and they are both making me look like shit! It’s a sadness. Just one more thing on the pile of shit that’s on my plate right now. But that’s beside the point.

As you may have guessed, the cooking has been limited lately. A lot of takeout, a lot of crap, a lot of fat going straight to my ass and thighs. Ugh! Oh well, let’s not worry about today that which we can worry about tomorrow. (procrastinator’s code!) I did already manage to make dinner this morning for tonight. It’s a type of goulash I think, but being that I’m not exactly sure what goulash really is, I can’t swear to it. Is this not the most ridiculous food blog ever?! Oh well, no one said you had to read it, did they?! Kidding! Kidding! I know you’re all here for my sparkling personality! Anywho, the goulash you ask – it’s super easy, fairly cheap, kid friendly and another one of those meals that you can make ahead of time, then just throw in the oven around meal time coz that’s how those toddlers like it. I will warn you, this is another of those meals that I’ve been making for so long, that I don’t measure anything. So you do you, capiche?

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground beef

4 oz cooked elbow macaroni (or your noodle of choice)

2 cans condensed tomato soup

1 green pepper, chopped

Worcestershire sauce (to taste)

Garlic powder (to taste)

Onion powder (to taste) – or you could simply saute a chopped onion if that’s your preference

1/2 cup grated parmesan

Italian bread crumbs

4-5 pads of butter

Directions:

Brown hamburger and green pepper together (and onion if that’s how you choose to roll). Drain fat and pour into large, oven-safe bowl. Add cooked elbow macaroni, tomato soup, Worcestershire, garlic, onion powder and parmesan cheese and stir until well blended. Now, if you cook this ahead of time, this is where I would put foil on top and stick it in the fridge. Then, once it’s time to cook, sprinkle the top with Italian style bread crumbs, and place 4-5 pads of butter on top. Bake on 350 for 40-45 minutes.

I’ll be serving mine tonight with a steamed broccoli, cauliflower and carrot blend and biscuits (you know, the kind from the freezer). It’s good stuff, y’all. It’s easy stuff, y’all. And the kids like it, y’all. Again, how goulash-ey it is, I’m not sure. Call it beefaroni if I’m way off. But try it out. Even Mikey likes it. Ok, that could be true or not, I don’t know a Mikey! And we don’t eat Life cereal!