This recipe is part of Scrumptious Sunday’s Pasta Edition where you’ll find more delicious dishes.
For another Kugel recipe, don't miss Tamy's Pineapple Noodle Pudding which she just added as a bonus recipe for today's Scrumptious Sunday. She has three new Scrumptious Sunday recipes waiting for you at 3 Sides of Crazy.
If you are not Jewish, you might not be familiar with Kugel, but it is a deliciously sweet dessert made with egg noodles.I remember my first Kugel. It was at a bittersweet party. It was a great party, but it was a good-bye party for my best friend, our son’s Godmother, who was moving across the country to Michigan. One of her co-workers, as stereotypical a Jewish mother as you can get in real life, brought the Kugel.
At first I wasn’t sure about noodles with sugar. Would it be like chicken with sweet chocolate sauce, which makes me run away at the mere thought of it? Or would it be as delicious as a creamy rice pudding?
Even our son loved it. He was nearly 3 years old at the time, and after a full dinner was ravenously eating more than his own weight in Kugel if he ate a spoonful.
It is a dish full of goodness, fat, calories and sweetness, so leave all thoughts of dieting behind. My wish for you is that you enjoy it as much as we have.
Applesauce Kugel
1 (16 oz.) package wide egg noodles
Apple juice (optional)
2 Tablespoons sugar (optional)
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½ Cup golden raisins
½ Cup applejuice
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6 Eggs
1 Cup softened butter (2 sticks)
½ Cup sour cream
½ Cup cream cheese
1-2 Cups sugar (see note ***)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 Cup chunky, spiced applesauce
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon or to taste
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For Crumble
1 ½ Cup graham crackers, matza OR corn flakes, crumbled
½ Cup brown sugar
1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
½ Cup melted butter (1 stick)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. (175 C.).
Coat a 9”X13” or larger baking dish with butter or spray.
Cook noodles according to package directions, but slightly undercooked. (Omit any salt or broth suggested!! Optionally you can substitute apple juice and 2 Tablespoons sugar for the broth and salt.)
Let golden raisins simmer in ½ cup apple juice until plump, about 10-15 minutes. (You could also plop them in with the noodles and skip this step.)
Beat eggs in large bowl. Add remaining ingredients mixing well between each addition. Incorporate into drained noodles and add raisins. Pour into baking dish.
Combine all ingredients for the crumble and spread over noodles.
Bake for 45-60 minutes. (Cover with foil if your oven has a tendency to burn, removing foil for the last 10-15 minutes of baking time for a nice golden brown color.)
Kugel can be served warm or cold. If you have leftovers, they will taste even better the next day.
***Nota Bene: Kugel is meant to be very sweet so 2 cups of sugar is not too much. However many of us are not used to so much sweetness so 1 ½ Cups of sugar will still be enough. You can lower the sugar to as little as 1 Cup, but not any less unless you have special dietary restrictions.
I love applesauce! This sound delicious! I believe with all of these ingredients the noodles will be scrumptious! I have added your Ice Cream badge to Mercedes Rocks! Come on over for some Chicken and Cheese Baked Pasta at my place!
ReplyDeleteHappy Sunday!
Mere
I remember the first time I had this - my little Jewish neighbor brought it over as a welcome to the neighborhood back in 1986. She called it noodle pudding. It was so delicious. I wanted to ask her for the recipe, but I'd just met her and I was young and shy. I made her my floating fruit cake in the same pan she'd brought over and returned it to her to ask for the recipe. I remember how hard she laughed at me. She said it was a Jewish custom to always return a plate, bowl or dish full and of course I could have the recipe. We became fast friends and shared LOTS of recipes before I moved.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mercedes, for helping me spread the word about my July 18th Ice Cream Round Up!
ReplyDeleteTamy, that's a great story. Thank you for sharing it. It is so nice to find neighbors we like and can even share a friendship with. :-) A "floating" fruit cake sounds interesting too. I am a big fan of regular fruit cake, and just about any pie or cake with fruit. I didn't realize returning a dish full was a Jewish custom. I'm glad to learn that. I do that too! I just thought it was a nice gesture. It's something my mom always does, so I do it too. :-)
I am willing to try this. It sounds good.
ReplyDeleteI adore kugel! Can't wait to try it out. I have a very fond memory of making an entire pan with my Jewish friend in college and subsequently eating just about the entire pan between just the two of us!
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