Neil and I have both been suffering form the affects of the seasonal changes. Last week we wanted a dinner that was simple to make and easy to clean up. Rummaging through the cupboards I found a couple cans of tomato soup. (Progresso Tomato Basil soup-the only kind I'll eat...)
Anyway, we didn't just want soup and grilled cheese because that's boring. SO, we decided to play around with what we had and ended up discovering a very yummy goulash type thing.
*You should know that we doubled this recipe this time around so the pictures show a lot more than what this recipe will yield unless you double it*
Ingredients:
*Keep in mind that we threw what we had into a pot. Most of the ingredients are optional or can be switched out for something else. See the "Variations" at the bottom. :)
- 1 Can tomato soup (Like I said, we use Progresso but any tomato soup, I'm sure will work.)
- 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
- A few cups of cooked egg noodles (less egg noodles makes it more of soup)
- 1 package of Kielbasa
- 1/2 cup of Pepperoni
- 2 cups of (diced) Zucchini
- Basil (fresh or not, doesn't matter)
- Salt and Pepper
Step One:
Cut up your zucchini into medium-thick slices. Cut each slice into fourths. In a pot on the stove, over medium heat, boil your zucchini until it is soft but not soggy. While you wait you can multitask with the next few steps!
Step Two:
Follow the heating instructions on the soup can for the soup. As the soup is heating up, add the whipping cream to the pot. (To be honest with you, I didn't measure how much cream I added. I just kept pouring, little by little, until the soup was more orange than red.) Let this mixture heat up until it starts to slightly boil. (Not mega boil or you might just burn it all together!!)
Step Three:
At the same time, in a separate pot, boil your noodles until they are soft, not hard or al dente.
Step Four:
Cut up as much of the Kielbasa as you'd like. I used about half of the link. Cut into medium-thick slices. Then cut each slice into fourths. Take your pepperoni and cut those into fourths as well. Clear as mud?
Add both the Kielbasa and the pepperoni to a pan over medium-low heat.
The goal is not to "cook" the meat but to just heat it up.
*Time Out*
Make sure your soup/cream mix isn't burning. If it's heated through, turn the burner down to warm or just turn it off completely. If it starts to get cold, you can turn the burner on for a bit to warm it up! :)
Step Five:
Drain the noodles and add them to the soup. Drain the zucchini and add them to the soup. Once the meat is heated mix that into the soup. Heat together for a few minutes. Season with Basil, salt and pepper to taste.
Step Six:
Serve!
Variations:
1. Replace the heavy whipping cream with light whipping cream or even milk. Milk won't make it as thick in the end though.
2. If you don't have kielbasa on hand, chicken or ground beef would be yummy too.
3. Switch out the egg noodles for spaghetti, fettuccine, macaroni or even orzo pasta.
4. Omit the pepperoni.
I could go on and on but to be honest, there are so many variations to this dish! Experience with whatever your taste buds fancy. If you find a really good variation or have a suggestion, leave me a comment! I'd love to try it out!
Side Dish Suggestions:
2. Green Salad
3. Steamed carrots
