New England Chop Suey - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 lb ground beef
1 lb elbow macaroni
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt, to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste
1 (28 ounce) can Italian-style crushed tomatoes
2 (10 ounce) cans condensed tomato soup
10 ounces water, or can of V8 vegetable juice
1 teaspoon sugar
8 baby portabella mushrooms, sliced

Preparation

Add hot water to a large pan. I like to add to my pasta water heavy salt, dried oregano and a splash of EVOO. Bring to a boil and add elbows, cook to al dente 9 minutes. Drain pasta and return to pan, set aside.
While pasta is cooking chop up a large cup of onions, a cup of mushrooms and garlic to preference.
In a large skillet over medium heat, add the onions and half a tbs of EVOO. Soften onions, then add beef. When beef is nearly browned add mushrooms then garlic.
Simmer for 2 minutes (enough to mix semi evenly) then strain off excess fat. Add meat mixture to the pan with your pasta and return to low heat.
Add the can of crushed tomatoes and 2 cans of condensed soup. Add one soup cans worth of water and keep on low heat 10-15 minutes simmering gently but not sticking. Spice. I salt and pepper generously and add about 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper. I like to add a teaspoon of sugar to neutralize the acidity of tomatoes.
Serve on a cold day.