A lot of fried foods are eaten around Hanukkah and as much as I enjoy an excuse to eat fried foods. I can only handle so much fried foods and even after those latkes I still crave this yummy dish!

 There is another food that is often enjoyed on the Jewish Holidays and the Biblical Feast Days and that is Kugel.  

Kugel is a traditional dish that can be so versatile. It can be made as a side dish or even as a dessert. You can add pecans and brown sugar, any kind of fruit, and even chocolate chips!

 As much as I love playing around with Kugel this recipe is my favorite. The holidays are my excuse to make this comfort food that is so satisfying. 

Sweet Noodle Kugel

Preheat oven to 350* and grease a 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. 

Total Time: Prep. 20 minutes. Bake time is 50+ min. plus standing time

1 Package (1 pound)  of Egg Noodle
1/2 Cup butter, melted
8 Eggs
2 Cups of Sugar
2 Cups(16 ounces) Sour Cream 
2 Cups (16 ounces) Cottage Cheese
2 TSP. Vanilla
1 Cup of Raisins
2 Apples Diced small

Topping:
Cinnamon to taste

Cook Noodles according to package: drain. Toss with butter, and set aside.  Cover raisins in a small sauce pan with water and bring to a boil, and drain. (this makes the raisins soft).

In a large bowl, beat eggs, sugar, sour cream, cottage cheese, vanilla, raisins, and apples until well blended.  Stir in the egg noodles. 

Transfer to the greased baking dish. Sprinkle cinnamon on top. You can also put some of the raisins on top or make rings out of another apple to dress it up.

Bake uncovered for 50-55 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160*.  Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. You can serve warm or cold.

**A few tips I put my dish on a cookies sheet as it always seems to bubble over. I also like to put aluminum foil over the dish half way through cooking.

Jesus, is truly the light of the world. May your Hanukkah be a blessed time to reflect on Him.

The blogging challenge for today is a special recipe to share.  I have lots of special recipes but, I think I've shared them on my blog before. I decided to try one that I tried recently.

I've been trying to cook with more honey lately. Considering that I have honey in several 5 gallon buckets! Not a bad thing to have that much honey around. Thanks to the beehives in the backyard I can explore lots of cooking with honey.

Honey Krispie Bars

3/4 cup honey
3/4 cup chunky peanut butter
3 1/2 cups of cereal (like-Rice Krispies,  Special K, Cheerios)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Bring honey and peanut butter to just under a a boil. Remove from head and add vanilla & cereal together. Mix it well. 

Pack into an ungreased 9x9 pan. Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips together and spread over the bars. Let cool and enjoy!

What's a special recipe that has been a winner in your home lately?

 

Do you have a favorite Thanksgiving tradition in your home? For me a tradition is in the form of reading a book, "Cranberry Thanksgiving" by Wende and Harry Devlin. 

We love reading this wonderful fun filled story every Thanksgiving. It's a wonderful story that is delightfully fun with a bit of humor. This teaches a valuable lesson about not judging a person by the outward appearance. Being gracious to share with others who don't have any family or are just far away from family.

I enjoy making the recipe included in the book also. My kids unfortunately are not fond of cranberries but, they enjoy baking the bread. You can substitute the cranberries for raisins, which my kids only like raisins by themselves.

Grandmother's Famous Cranberry Bread

 2 cups flour, sifted

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup butter

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon orange rind, grated

3/4 cup orange juice

1 1/2 cups raisins, we don't use raisins (optional)

2 cups fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped

Directions:

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda together.

Cut in 1/4 cup butter until mixture is crumbly.

Add egg, orange peel, and orange juice and mix until mixture is evenly moist.

Fold in raisins and cranberries. Spoon into a greased 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan.

Bake at 350°F for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until toothpick in center comes out clean.

Cool out of pan on a wire rack. Keep stored in aluminum foil.

Enjoy! What tradition do you have in your home during Thanksgiving?

I have been playing around with my Bosch again and craving some English Muffins. Last year someone gave me a loaf of English Muffin Bread and the store bought ones had lost all their appeal to me. After a few trails of different recipes I have found one I like. This is made of white flour. I am still wanting to find a whole wheat recipe. Enjoy!

English Muffin Bread

5 cups all-purpose flour, divided
2  packages active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups warm milk (110 to 115 degrees F)

1/2 cup warm water (120 to 130 degrees F)

Cornmeal

In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 cups flour, yeast, sugar, salt and baking soda. Add warm milk and water; beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat on high for 3 minutes. Stir in remaining flour (batter will be stiff). Do not knead. Grease two 8-1/2-in. x 4-1/2-in. x 2-1/2-in. loaf pans. Sprinkle pans with cornmeal. Spoon batter into the pans and sprinkle cornmeal on top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees F for 35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans immediately to cool on wire racks.               

When we where in Israel last year I came across this salad. It was served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I'm still not hooked on it as a breakfast item. I did enjoy it for other meals.  It's a very colorful dish. I have taken this to a few potlucks and it's always a big hit. I can't wait till the items are fresh from my very own garden.

1 lb of English cucumbers, diced
1 lb of tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/3 cup of purple onions, diced (you can use white onions. I prefer the purple with this dish) 
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
3 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
3 TBSP lemon juice
Salt if you want to add it

I like to dice the ingredients smaller. That is just my preference. 

Add the cucumbers, tomatoes, onions in a large mixing bowl along with the other ingredients. Mix it well until all the ingredients are well blended together. 

You can serve fresh immediately or chill in the refrigerator.