For $29.99 (or equivalent) you can upgrade your 'QuickTime' (component of MacOS X) to '
QuickTime Pro'; where, via the 'QuickTime Player' application - you can select the 'File, New Audio Recording' menu item, to present the simplistic 'Audio Recording' window.
Unless you specifically save the recorded audio elsewhere, a default 'Audio.mov' (then 'Audio 1.mov', 'Audio 2.mov', etc.) file will be automatically created on your 'Desktop'.
Once finished recording your audio, you can edit and / or export it (via the 'File, Export...' menu item) to many formats; prior to closing the 'Audio Recording' window.
Also, you can drag previously created 'Audio.mov' files onto 'QuickTime Player' for editing and / or exporting.
Click
here for additional information about and tutorials on 'QuickTime Pro'.