Yes folks, it’s official… I’ve got dairy on the brain! Shavuot is right around the corner, a Jewish holiday that celebrates the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai. On Shavuot we eat dairy foods. There could be a number of reasons for this tradition. There is a verse in the Song of Solomon (4:11) which says that the Torah is like “milk and honey under your tongue,” which might indicate a connection between the Torah-centric holiday and dairy foods. Some believe that on the first Shavuot, because the Israelites had not yet received the kosher laws, their foods did not follow kashrut. When they received the Torah, they read the new laws of kashrut and realized their meat dishes were not kosher, so they opted to eat dairy dishes only. Still others say that Shavuot occurs during the fertile spring period, when animal mothers produce lots of fresh milk.
Whatever the reason, I love dairy foods, so this is my kind of holiday! As I was flipping through my recipe archives, I suddenly realized that I’ve never shared my basic recipe for a Sweet Lokshen Kugel. Gasp! How did that happen??
Kugel is a Jewish dish similar to a casserole or pudding. The dish originated over 800 years ago in southern Germany and became a staple with Jewish families throughout Eastern Europe. Jewish immigrants brought the kugel with them to the United States, where it continues to be a popular holiday dish today. There are many kinds of kugel, all made with three basic ingredients: eggs, fat, and starch. The starch used to make kugel varies; I’ve seen kugels made with matzo, matzo farfel, noodles, bread, or rice. They’re all yummy in their own way, but my favorite is noodle kugel.
The word lokshen is Yiddish for noodle. A lokshen kugel is a kugel made with noodles. There are endless variations on the noodle kugel theme; they can be made savory or sweet, topped or untopped, with dried fruit or nuts or seasonings. Sweet lokshen kugels tend to be the most popular in the U.S., with good reason! They are simple and affordable to throw together with just a few ingredients. They can be easily transported, making kugel a good choice for potlucks or family get-togethers. Most importantly, they are delicious.
This is a great basic dairy kugel recipe– moist and creamy, with a nice crunchy noodle topping. My family likes it exactly as written. You can feel free to adapt it to suit your taste, kugel is very forgiving. Raisins can be substituted with another dried fruit, like cherries or chopped dried apricots. Nuts and spices can be mixed in before baking. Add a topping if you’d like. The kugel will taste best when made with full fat ingredients, but if you’re watching your figure you can use lowfat dairy. It will still taste great.
Enough chit-chatting, time for a slice of kugel. Shabbat Shalom!
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Sweet Lokshen Kugel
Ingredients
- 1 cup raisins (optional) - you may substitute other fruits like craisins, dried chopped apricots, or chopped drained pineapple
- 12 ounces wide egg noodles
- 6 large eggs
- 1 pound sour cream (2 cups)
- 8 ounces cottage cheese (1 cup)
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened - OR farmer's cheese, crumbled (1 cup)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Cinnamon and sugar for dusting
- Nonstick cooking oil spray
NOTES
Instructions
- Place a rack in the middle of your oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Cover the raisins with hot water and let them soak to plump while you prepare the other ingredients.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles to the pot, bring back to a boil, and let them cook until tender (not overly soft), about 5 minutes. Drain and return the cooked noodles to the pot.
- In a food processor or blender, blend together the eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese, cream cheese, sugar, melted butter, and salt.
- Pour the egg mixture over the cooked noodles in the pot and stir until well combined.
- Drain the raisins. Stir them into the noodles.
- Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking oil. Pour the noodle mixture into the dish.
- Top the kugel by sprinkling generously with sugar and lightly with cinnamon. Alternatively, you can use your favorite kugel topping (streusel, crushed graham crackers, cornflakes, etc.).
- Bake the kugel for about 60 minutes, turning once halfway through cooking, till the center of the kugel is set and the tips of the noodles turn golden brown. Remove from the oven.
- Let the kugel rest for 15-20 minutes before slicing. Kugel can be served warm or cold.
Nutrition
Loved this kugel. I also added canned peaches with the raisins. Just like my mother used to do.
This is just the best recipe my son even asks for it instead of Birthday Cake. He eats it throughout the week for dessert or breakfast. When my mom was alive she also requested it. Wondering if anyone tried it with low fat ingredients?
Thanks
I use this recipe every time! Only difference is I had more kinds of fruit (like today, pineapple tidbits, raisins, dried cranberries and dried mango). Delicious.
I made the Loshan Kugel. Excellent. Used cranberries and substituted the 2 cups of sour with two cups vanilla yogurt.
I am wondering if Kugel can be frozen.
Yes! I like to freeze kugel when it’s almost-but-not-quite done (baked through, but not fully browned – like 90% done), then reheat it straight from the freezer in the oven and continue baking at 350 degrees F until browned. Enjoy!
Tried this recipe all I can say is wow yummy! Changed the recipe just a smidge. Replaced the cottage cheese with Ricotta cheese and used dried Apricots I wish I had some Crasins to add to the recipe but it was sweet light and just Wow. Thanks so much!
Delicious! I substitute the raisins with 1 cup of chunky applesauce and use a little extra butter – about 6 Tbsp. It is perfect! I made this for my congregations Rosh Hashana luncheon and break fast. Got tons of rave revenues and requests for the recipe.
Exactly the way my Russian grandmother made her Kugel, except she would never add fruit.
Thank you for this recipe, it is a family holiday favorite!
can you use matzoh farfel instead of noodles for this recipe for passover?
My grandmother passed away a few years ago and her noodle kugel recipe went with her. This is extremely close to replicating it, and honestly nearly brought me to tears when I tasted it. Thank you.
Zane I totally know how you feel. It makes my heart so happy knowing this brought back such wonderful memories for you!
A family favorite now, one of my go-to recipes. Also, when I played Mr. Mushnik in a community theater production of Little Shop of Horrors, I wowed my fellow cast members by bringing this lovely kugel to the cast party. Thank you, Ms. Avey!
Ha! Love that story. Thanks for sharing!
I can’t remember when I found your recipe but it has become a part of my holidays. I use dried cherries as well and raisins. It’s so good!
Fantastic! It brought me back to childhood!! I made a few tweaks based upon what I had in the house and dietary needs. I used a 12 oz. bag of Gluten Free (Manischewitz brand) thin egg noodles, and subbed ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese simply because I was out of cottage cheese! Instead of a topping, I sprinkled cinnamon on top (no sugar). I also used about 7/8 Cup sugar in the recipe because I was making for all adults and I was afraid the full cup would be too sweet. I think it would have been fine with the full cup BTW, and even with my tweaks it was absolutely fabulous! The ricotta makes the kugel a bit richer, and although it was absolutely delicious I’ll make it again with the ingredients as listed (except for the GF noodles, I’m stuck with those) – Tori Avey knows what she’s doing!
The kugel is in the oven smelling delicious. Made it last year and I thought it was the best of my recipes for noodle kugel. Only thing I did differently was to beat the egg whites separately and add just before pouring into the baking dish. I’m hoping for a little like a souffle.
What. Effect would it have on the recipe to mix all the batter right on top of the noodles? (pother thani would not have to clean the food processor)
Would the cottage cheese lumps just be more visible?
I would at the very least mix the ingredients in a separate bowl to remove large lumps and make sure the sauce is smooth, then mix into the noodles. You don’t necessarily need the processor, but the texture will be slightly different.
I was very excited about your recipe. My first kugel was a bit dry so I thought I yours would be better. My DIL is Jewish. It was ready in 40 minutes and a bit dry for my liking. What can I add to make it better?
I substitute 1 cup chunky apple sauce for the raisins, and use about 6 Tbsp butter instead of 4. Not even close to dry!
Not much less sugar (about 1/3). Great recipe!
Great recipe! I always have a problem knowing what to serve with sweet kugel. Do you have any ideas? Thank you!