Aunt Lorraine's Kugel

The Washington Post, September 19, 2007

• • Course: Main Course, Side Dish
• • Features: Holiday (Rosh Hashanah)

Summary:

Washington resident Diane Eichner has made this simple noodle pudding for just about every Jewish holiday (except Passover) for the past 30 years. Her Aunt Lorraine gave the recipe to Eichner's mother, who also made it for holidays for her family.

The unbaked kugel needs to set up overnight (or a day and a half) in the refrigerator and can go straight into the oven. Serve with sour cream.

12 to 20 servings

Ingredients:

• • 1 pound broad (dried) egg noodles
• • 2 8-ounce packages low-fat cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese, softened
• • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) lightly salted butter, at room temperature
• • 3/4 to 1 cup sugar
• • 8 large eggs
• • 4 cups nonfat milk
• • 1/3 cup low-fat sour cream
• • 1/3 cup cottage cheese
• • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• • 2 to 3 cups sugar-coated cornflakes cereal, such as Kellogg's Frosted Flakes

Directions:

Lightly grease an 11-by-16-inch roasting pan or baking dish of equivalent size with nonstick cooking oil spray.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook the noodles according to package directions; do not overcook. Drain and transfer the noodles to the prepared pan, spreading them evenly.
Meanwhile, combine the cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese, butter and sugar to taste in the bowl of a stand mixer; blend on medium speed for a few minutes, then add the eggs one at time, incorporating after each addition. Reduce the speed to low and add the milk, sour cream, cottage cheese, cinnamon and vanilla extract; the mixture will be very liquid. Pour the mixture over the noodles; use a slotted spoon to lift some of the noodles so that the liquid is well distributed. The noodles should be just about covered with the mixture; cover and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Uncover the kugel and bake for 60 minutes to 90 minutes; with 15 or 20 minutes of baking time left, pull the kugel out of the oven and lightly crush handfuls of cereal over the top, spreading the cereal evenly (do not use the flakes from the bottom of the box, which have too much sugar). Return to the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes; when it is done, the kugel should not have liquid at the edges or in the center. Cut into squares and serve warm.

Recipe Source:

From Washington resident Diane Eichner.

280 calories, 12g fat, 7g saturated fat, 131mg cholesterol, 191mg sodium, 32g carbohydrates, 1g dietary fiber, n/a sugar, 11g protein.