CRUNCHY NOODLE KUGEL à LA GREAT-AUNT MARTHA

Crunchy Noodle Kugel à la Great-Aunt Martha image

The genius of this sweet noodle kugel - the rich, custardy casserole that is a staple of Jewish cooking - is that its top is designed to offer maximum crunch while its interior remains creamy and luscious. The secret: use a jellyroll pan, which means that there is a greater amount of kugel surface area to brown in the oven, and bake it at a slightly higher temperature. Soaking the raisins in sherry or orange juice adds flavor, and also keeps them from burning in the extra-hot oven.

Provided by Melissa Clark

Categories dinner, lunch, casseroles, noodles, main course, side dish

Time 1h

Yield 8 to 12 servings

Number Of Ingredients 11

Ingredients

1 cup raisins
Sherry or orange juice
1 pound egg noodles
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces, more for pan
4 large eggs
3 cups cottage cheese
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Pinch of salt

Steps:

Put raisins in a microwave-safe bowl or small saucepan and cover with sherry or orange juice. Heat on stove top or in microwave oven until liquid is steaming hot (about 1 1/2 minutes in microwave or 3 minutes on stove). Let cool while you prepare kugel mixture.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter an 11-by-17-inch jellyroll pan. Cook noodles according to package directions and drain well. Immediately return noodles to pot and add butter. Toss until butter melts.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, cottage cheese, sour cream, sugar, cinnamon, lemon zest and salt. Drain raisins and add to bowl along with buttered noodles. Mix well.
Spread mixture in prepared pan and smooth top. Bake until top is crusty and golden, 25 to 35 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 446, UnsaturatedFat 6 grams, Carbohydrate 54 grams, Fat 18 grams, Fiber 2 grams, Protein 18 grams, SaturatedFat 9 grams, Sodium 326 milligrams, Sugar 19 grams, TransFat 0 grams