Cranberry-Orange Noodle Kugel
KUGEL CHALLENGE II
Just because Rosh Hashanah is over doesn’t mean I’m no longer thinking about kugel. Good food memories linger and besides, I always serve kugel for my Yom Kippur break-the-fast — the Linda/Susan recipe I mentioned last week — so I still have noodle pudding on the brain.
I know that ultra-rich and crunchy topped version is coming next Saturday night, so in the meantime, in between holidays, I like to tinker with different recipes.
My mother was an “if a recipe works why fix it?” person. But I can’t help myself. I experiment a lot to see what happens if you add this or that. Not necessarily to make it better. Just different.
I came up with this one, Cranberry-Orange, a traditional kugel with a contemporary twist. It’s sweet, tender in the middle and crunchy on top.
Cranberry-Orange Noodle Kugel
1 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup orange juice
1 pound wide egg noodles
1/4 pound butter, melted
6 large eggs
2 cups cottage cheese
1-1/2 cups dairy sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons grated fresh orange rind
1/8 teaspoon salt
Place the cranberries in a bowl and pour the orange juice over them. Let soak for at least 30 minutes. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9”x13” baking dish. Cook the noodles al dente (not quite done). Drain the noodles and place them in a large bowl. Pour in the melted butter and stir to coat all the noodles with the butter. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, cottage cheese, sour cream, sugar, cinnamon, orange rind and salt. Mix thoroughly. Spoon the cheese mixture over the noodles and toss to coat all the noodles. Add the cranberries and any remaining juice. Mix in. Place the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the top is browned and crunchy. Makes 8-10 servings
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