Guess what? It’s both.

The laser focus right now is on Josie’s impending Bat Mitzvah, a seismic event counting down in three weeks. Were I a sane-type person, I’d either a) pay someone to do all this, b) let people help me, or c) pay someone to do all this. But we are who we are. So there is rugelach, strawberry and apricot.  There are chocolate chip shortbreads, and there are mint brownies. There are espresso brownies and pecan brownies and cinnamon coffee cake, cut into small pieces specially designed to crumble down one’s dress.

And then there is kugel.

Don’t tell my Aunt Rose – or is it Aunt Ruth? – but I messed with her recipe. I ran the cottage cheese, sour cream & eggs through the blender for silkier texture; in one batch I poured on the cinnamon, and in another, combined pineapple with – ready now? – dried cranberries. Let’s just say I’m glad that Aunt Ruth is a non-Internet using 90-something, and will not get the news from me.

On the plus side, the cranberry-pineapple kugel – made specially for Josie, who loves both – is excellent, and she munches the trimmed ends as fast as I can cut them.

When I’m not mercilessly altering family tradition, I’m baking 200 dog biscuit-shaped cookies (hello, dog theme), stuffing candy into guest bags, and up late sketching centerpiece plans. Glittery dog house, no, striped dog house, no – well, you get the idea.  What I’m saying is that right now, be glad you’re not me. While it’s unlikely you’d ever want to be me anyway, right now is especially not the time.  Be glad you are you.  Can I be you?

On the other plus side, Mother’s Day provided, if not a break in the action, a little progress in action. My mother-in-law and Josie helped with stacks of unthinkable tasks, I was gifted with a speedy new printer, and Greg and I briefly stopped bickering over how much candy should be on what table. At the end of the day we all went out, where I enjoyed a glorious parmesan-crusted filet, truffled fries, creamed spinach and a warm, welcome glass of red. After, we stopped for cappuccino and a leisurely stroll home under cool, beautiful skies.

Back at my dining room table, I gulped the last of my coffee and tied ribbons onto guest bags.

And that’s the way it is here at Kugel-palooza. I said to someone recently, “what is this? When did I become an extra in a shtetl musical?” But – shh, don’t tell my family - it’s okay. We’re quite proud of our girl, and what’s more, I think she might be secretly fond of her crazy mom. Overall, looming kugels aside, a pretty good Mother’s Day.  How was yours?

* during party countdown, expect less frequent but possibly meatier posts, including one juicy story on its way.  Not down, just a bit out – and thank you, as always, for Simmering.

Today’s rerun features noodles, sisters and one family’s assumption, corrected. From October 2008, the original post can be found here.

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Noodle kugel is a humble dish with an outsize name – a funny name, good for comedians and grandmas and giggling kids. Kugel is ripe with pronunciation – koo-gle or kuh-gle or whatever, just pass-me-that-stuff-now. It’s found on Jewish holiday tables and in deli case pyramids, golden twisty egg noodles cut in thick and improbably square slabs, bound by sour cream and more eggs, cottage cheese and drifting sugar. My family’s kugel is found on this 3 x 5 card.

Wearing butter stains and cinnamon age spots, the card appears each holiday in my mother’s kitchen – first under a fridge magnet (“I need to know where it is”) and eventually, on the counter. She could probably make kugel in her sleep, but it sits there, near the Pyrex, guiding the process like a curious lucky charm.

Most Jewish families pass down a kugel and inevitably a kugel family “secret,” some earnest addition like peaches or carrots or even chocolate chips. Kugel-lovers divide into “sweet” or “savory,” and at least in the matter of kugel, I stand with the sweet. I like my kugel luscious, sugared and cheesy, with distinct overtones of blintzes and dessert.

My mom received the Selectric-typed card long ago from Aunt Rose, as dear a lady as there ever was, and it was fondly known as “Aunt Rose’s Kugel” for decades, right up to the shocking family moment when it was revealed to be Aunt Ruth’s. My Grandma Trudy had three sisters – Ruth, Rose and Florence – and all four lived close, wore curlers, shopped sales and checked in by phone before ten. The four Weinstock girls – actually “LaVin,” lost at Ellis Island – were bound by love so fierce that it often excluded their husbands but extended monumentally, and quite judgmentally, to each other. At one time or another, they all baked and served this kugel.

Florence and Rose were the better cooks – my Grandma never met a Cantonese menu she didn’t like – and though Rose’s dish may be as sweet as Ruth’s, there was, of course, satisfaction in setting the recipe record straight. Enjoy noodling around on your own, and repeat the motto with me – never attribute a kugel to the wrong sister.

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Noodle Kugel

1 lb (16 oz) wide noodles (egg noodles)
4 eggs
1/2 pint sour cream (8 oz)
1 lb cottage cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/4 lb (one stick) butter
1 small can crushed pineapple – optional
1/2 box raisins (golden raisins are perfect) – optional
3/4 – 1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon (my mom’s addition – Aunt Ruth is still alive, so let’s keep that between us)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Coat a 9 x 13 pan with baking spray.

Melt butter, and set aside to slightly cool.

Cook noodles in boiling water until done; drain and slightly cool, placing noodles in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, lightly whisk together eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese, milk and melted butter. Toss egg mixture together with the noodles to combine, then add sugar and cinnamon, mixing to coat. If you are using the optional pineapple and raisins – and let me add it’s delicious to do so – toss them in now.

Place noodle mixture in prepared pan and bake until the top is lightly browned, 45 minutes – 1 hour. Cool until safe to handle, then cut into squares and serve warm. Leftovers freeze and reheat well.

Florence and Rose were the better cooks – my Grandma never met a Cantonese menu she didn’t like – and though Rose’s dish may be as sweet as Ruth’s, there was, of course, satisfaction in setting the recipe record straight.  Enjoy noodling around on your own, and repeat the motto with me – never attribute a kugel to the wrong sister.

—————
Noodle Kugel

1 lb (16 oz) wide noodles (egg noodles)
4 eggs
1/2 pint sour cream (8 oz)
1 lb cottage cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/4 lb (one stick) butter
1 small can crushed pineapple – optional
1/2 box raisins (golden raisins are perfect) – optional
3/4 – 1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon (my mom’s addition – Aunt Ruth is still alive, so let’s keep that between us)

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Coat a 9 x 13 pan with baking spray.

Melt butter, and set aside to slightly cool.

Cook noodles in boiling water until done; drain and slightly cool, placing noodles in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, lightly whisk together eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese, milk and melted butter. Toss egg mixture together with the noodles to combine, then add sugar and cinnamon, mixing to coat. If you are using the optional pineapple and raisins – and let me add it’s delicious to do so – toss them in now.

Place noodle mixture in prepared pan and bake until the top is lightly browned, 45 minutes – 1 hour. Cool until safe to handle, then cut into squares and serve warm. Leftovers freeze and reheat well.