About Noodle Puddings

In Jewish-American families with roots in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia, Poland, Lithuania and Romania, no Jewish meal—from brunch to midnight snack to wedding banquet—is complete without a big, heavy panful of noodle kugel. The word kugel means pudding in Yiddish and refers generically to dishes made variously with noodles, bread, rice and potatoes. Made with eggs and sugar, and sometimes fruit, and topped with nuts or corn flakes—a sort of casserole pudding—Jewish noodle puddings clearly belong in the dessert category. In practice, though, they are often served alongside meat dishes, even though they are sweet. Certain other Eastern European kugels, like Czech Noodle and Apple Soufflé and Hungarian Cheese-Noodle Dessert are reserved exclusively for dessert.