House Frau Goulash

Great recipes can come from the oddest places.

In this case, I received a Goulash recipe via a friend of a friend, who in turn was friend of an actor friend of Marlene Dietrich.

Supposedly the original recipe card specimen was handwritten in German and included a signature from the "Blonde Venus" herself. And apparently, while Marlene made this for her actor friend, she was getting very drunk on Champagne, wearing no make-up, looking every bit the simple house frau standing over the stove cooking.

That said, I understand that the Goulash is wunderbar.

Marlene Dietrich's Goulash

1 lb stew meat
1 lb onions
3 tbs paprika
3 tbs caraway seeds
2 garlic
salt to taste
1 tbls tomato paste
1 dried red hot pepper

Cook all together. Reduce and add water. Continue to reduce add water....over the course of 4 hours.

BTW - I've also heard tale that Ms. Dietrich made a mean Apple Strudel. If anyone can get a hold of the recipe and send it my way, promise to post it!