a pair of goulashes

i once went to a little eastern european restaurant in north beach, and was so excited to see goulash on the menu. not a common offering in san francisco, and a childhood favorite of mine to boot. i couldn't wait.
however, when the order appeared, i learned that goulash is one of those dishes with a lot of variations out there. the soupy stew on the plate in front of me was not my idea of goulash. and the open mic spoken word that started up right after was not my idea of poetry...but that's another story.

this is my version of the variation i grew up with:
dice an onion and caramelize in a little olive oil. when translucent, add one pound ground chuck and a tablespoon of paprika, and begin browning. in another pan, boil up a package of macaroni to just underdone. then drain the pasta, pour back into the pasta pan, and add the meat. with the pan over low heat, add a pint of tomato soup and stir till the dish comes together.
i used pacific natural foods' organic roasted red pepper and tomato soup, because it was just on sale at red clover...but any tomato soup works.