My Moms' Goody Goulash

                                                                         

This was always one of my favorite meals as a child & is now one of my comfort foods. The plus is it is easy, fast & cheap to make. I mix up the type of ground meat to give it a different flare each time I make it. You can use many options for the add ins too! Kids & adults will love my Moms' Goody Goulash!

1&1/2 Pounds Ground Burger, or Ground Turkey, or Ground White Meat Chicken which is what I used in this, or Loose Sausage that could be Sweet Italian, Hot Italian or just Country Style Loose Sausage!

1 Onion Chopped

1 Rib of Celery Chopped & this adds great flavor & texture I highly recommend you do not leave it out of the recipe

Chopped Green Pepper is an Option I would use 1 whole pepper

1 Cup Chopped Mushrooms is an option

1/2 Box Elbow Macaroni cooked per package directions, I cook a whole box  use 1/2 for this recipe & 1/2 for Macaroni Salad or Pasta Salad.

32 Ounces of your Favorite Jar Sauce, I use Prego Chunky Garden Harvest Pasta Sauce

2 Cups Pizza Cheese Shredded or use you favorite cheese!

Brown the meat with the chopped vegetables, drain if needed. Now stir in the cooked elbow macaroni & the sauce. Cook & stir until hot & bubbling. Cover the top with the 2 cups of cheese & let it melt. Dish up! Serves 6 large servings!

Holy Cow Cake as per Genius Kitchen

This is my version with the Chocolate & Caramel Sauce Drizzles!

                                                                       

My daughter saw this cake from Genius Kitchen & requested for me to make it for her birthday! I was happy to oblige! Chocolate cake with caramel, cream cheese, whipped topping & Butterfingers, what is not to love! It was a huge success & I mean huge! The kid & I both dished up pieces this big but could only eat about 1/2 of it. This cake is so rich & filling you only need pieces about 1/2 of the size we took! But it was fun trying to eat all of it! You will love this cake!

1, 18 ounce Devils Food Cake mix, I could not find one this size so I used the 15 ounce cake mix & added 5 TBS flour + 1 TBS Cocoa to make up the difference as per the tip on Genius Kitchen except they said all flour but more chocolate never hurt & it didn't!

1&1/3 Cups Water

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil

3 Large Eggs

Mix according to package directions except use the above ingredients, Spray a 9x13 inch pan with baking spray. Pour in cake mix & bake in a preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven poke holes in the cake & pour over the cake the following while still warm!

14 Ounces of Sweetened Condenses Milk + 8 Ounces of Caramel Topping. I could only find a 12 Ounce jar & I used all of it, it was just fine!

Now chill the cake.

Once chilled at least 2 hours but overnight works, crush up Butterfingers candy bars enough to make about 2 cups. The original recipe calls for 1 cup crushed Butterfingers but more chocolate is better in my book! Helpful tip, refrigerate the Butterfingers if it is a hot day, that way they crush instead of smoosh! I froze mine that worked great except they were harder to crush, but they definitely crushed nicely! Now sprinkle 1/2 of the crushed Butterfingers over the top of the cake. Cover the top with the following,

8 Ounces of beaten softened cream cheese, & 1 teaspoon of vanilla once beaten beat  in to the mixture,  12 ounces of thawed frozen whipped topping  also known as Cool Whip! I had to buy the larger tub my grocer did not have the 12 ounce tubs, DARN! NOT! I just used the rest as I will tell you!

Now spread the leftover Cool Whip over the cream cheese mixture, Now sprinkle the rest of the crushed Butterfingers & refrigerate another 2 hours at least! 

                                                                      

This cake is suppose to serve 20 servings & I thought HA, sure it does, that is sarcasm folks! So Jen & I served up the nice big pieces you see in the first picture, HOLY COW, we could not finish or servings. This is a rich, dense, wet wonderful cake but after 2 bites you think WOW I think I am full. This takes "that sinking feeling" to a whole new level. PS: my caramel topping that I added to the mixture that you pour over the cake, the 4 extra tablespoons that I added to that step, I wish I had saved it & drizzled it over the top of the cake & some chocolate drizzle would have been extra goodness too. But on its' own this cake is a winner! 


                                                                            
                                                                           

Best & Easiest Crock-Pot Chili EVER!

                                                                           

THis is the easiest chili you will ever make & boy, is it delicious! This is a picture with ingredients just combined in the crock-pot. It will cook on low for a good 6 hours! Serve over rice, noodles, we love mashed potatoes with this ladled over or use it over baked potatoes & top with cheese & a dollop of sour cream! Wait until you see how easy it is & then once you taste this chili, it will become a family favorite!

1&1/2 Pound to 2 Pounds of Ground Beef or Turkey Burger

1 Large Onion Chopped

1, 24 Ounce Jar of Chili's Salsa or use your favorite.

1, 40 Ounce Can of Kidney Beans I use Light Red Beans,

Chili Powder To Taste
Parsley Chopped 2 TBS or use Cilantro if you like.

Anything else you like to add for heat, feel free, my palate is pretty tame so I go with mild heat.

Brown Burger, drain, put everything in the crock-pot & cook on low 6 hours! DIG IN! Makes 6 large servings