The Food Of My People

Maybe some of you know, maybe some of you don't- you probably don't care, but in order for this post to make sense I'll share with you that I am, in fact, Jewish. Were you expecting something more shocking?

Anyways, back to the noodle and the point of this post. Recently my brother-completely out of the blue- asked for noodle pudding (aka noodle kugel). If you don't know what it is, it suffices to say that it's a savory or sweet egg noodle casserole made by Jewish grandmas all over the world. There are many ways to make it, but we grew up with a sweet cinnamon raisin variety. As far as I know, there is no specific time you're supposed to eat it but it will usually show up at holidays or for Shabbat (weekly day of rest, Friday sundown to Saturday sundown).

However, being the mostly non practicing Jews we are, it showed up for us every summer when my grandparents would come from Palm Desert, CA to get away from the heat. They would stay all summer, and Grandma would keep a constant supply of noodle pudding in the fridge for us to nibble on or take in our camp lunches (interestingly enough, I don't remember anyone ever asking me what it was). This is the only time in my life I can ever recall eating it, and until Ryan asked me to make it, I probably hadn't eaten it in 10+ years.

I'm a sucker good sister so I dutifully went looking for recipes. Why would I look for recipes when I could just dial-a-Grandma? Well, I have a few restrictions when it comes to ingredients. I maintain a healthy low fat diet for myself and the other adults in the house who are subject to my cooking. I knew Grandma's recipe would include butter (as most do), a big no-no for us. So, I went hunting for low fat recipes and found one that I easily modified to being virtually FAT FREE. Yes, this creamy and decadent dish has almost no fat and is chalk full of protein. My non-Jewish husband gave it a thumbs up (the first time he's ever had noodle pudding), so feel free to try this even if you aren't Jewish!

Virtually Fat Free Raisin Noodle Pudding

1 bag no yolk egg noodles (yields about 5 cups), cooked

2 cups fat free cottage cheese

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup raisins (or to taste)

8 oz fat free vanilla yogurt

4 oz fat free cream cheese, softened and cut into small pieces (the kind in a brick, not the tub)

3/4 cup plus 1/8 cup egg beaters (a little less than a cup)

cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 375. Cook the noodles (boil in water for about 5 minutes) and drain, set aside. Combine the yogurt, cottage cheese, egg beaters, cream cheese, sugar, and spices in a large bowl. Add the noodles and the raisins and stir to combine, pour into a sprayed 9x12 baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes until the top is brown.

Enjoy!