Sunday, February 19, 2012

Skillet Meatball Goulash ***

I've been slacking on posting lately, but we've been so consumed with basketball and Cub Scouts since we came back from Christmas break. Our meals have mostly been quick, off-the-top-of-Amy's-head kind of things. Nothing post-worthy. I hope to be back into the swing of things over the next week, since bball is finally coming to a close. Whew!

Dh actually requested this one, which is pretty strange for him.  Normally, I'm pretty much left to my own devices when it comes to meal planning, so when dh makes a request, I almost always make it that same day, lol.  The chili sauce in this really makes all the difference, in my opinion.  That makes it a little more than the normal stroganoff-type dish.  I use turkey meatballs, fat free sour cream, and whole grain egg noodles, so it's a little bit healthier than the original recipe as written.  However, the whole grain noodles just don't soften as well as the regular.  When I use them, I make sure to add some extra water and let it simmer a bit longer.  I also like to have enough leftovers for lunches the next day, so I use the full 32-oz bag of meatballs, 8-oz of sour cream, and an extra 1/4 cup of water.  This is so unbelievably easy to throw together.  I love that the meatballs are cooked from frozen and that both the meatballs and the noodles are cooked in the same pan.  A girl's gotta love one-dirty-dish-meals!  The kids ate it up, and dh raved about it.  The house smelled wonderful.  So easy and such a comfort dish.  :)


SKILLET MEATBALL GOULASH
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Recipezaar)

½ cup chopped green bell pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (12 ounce) jar beef gravy
1 (14 ounce) can beef broth
¾ cup water
2 tablespoons chili sauce
12-16 ounces frozen cooked Italian meatballs
8 ounces uncooked mini lasagna noodles (I prefer egg noodles)
½ cup light sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Spray 12-inch nonstick skillet with nonstick cooking spray; Heat over medium-high heat until hot.
Add bell pepper and onion; cook and stir 2-3 minutes or until crisp-tender.
Add gravy, broth, water, chili sauce and meatballs; mix well.
Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
Reduce heat to medium.
Cover; cook 5 minutes or until meatballs are thawed.
Add uncooked noodles; mix well.
Cover; cook about 10 minutes or until noodles are tender and meatballs are thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat.
Stir in sour cream until well blended.
Sprinkle with parsley.
* Amy’s notes: I use the full bag of turkey meatballs, fat free sour cream (8-oz), and 2 cups of beef broth.