Almondcrownedkugel Recipes

APRICOT CRANBERRY KUGEL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325.
• Cook EGG NOODLES in well salted water to al dente. Rinse in cold water to stop the cooking and drain as much as possible, stirring noodles in colander to get all the moisture out. Set aside to allow more drying.
• Crush about half the box of CINNAMON TOAST CRUNCH in food processor (or you can do this by hand. I sometimes put it in a zip-lock and crunch it up with my hands). Stop short of completely pulverizing it, but it should be broken up enough that it not longer is totally identifiable as cereal.
• MIX in softened BUTTER to CRUSHED CEREAL until butter is well distributed. Put aside (refrigerate if it will be a long time until you cook).
• In a mixing bowl, beat together EGGS, SOUR CREAM, CREAM CHEESE, SALT, and VANILLA EXTRACT. You can use an electric mixer for this, but it's really not difficult to do by hand. Everything should be well incorporated and fairly smooth, but it's okay if it's still a slightly lumpy.
• Mix in APRICOT PRESERVES and GROUND CINNAMON to taste (batter should taste good, but very sweet, since it will mellow out when combined with the noodles and baked).
• Liberally BUTTER the inside of an 8x8 baking dish (I like to use glass, but anything will work).
• Check that the noodles are pretty dry (if not, dump them on a paper towel to mop up a little more moisture.
• Transfer NOODLES to baking dish and pour in BATTER. Stir to combine.
• Add a handful or two of DRIED CRANBERRIES and mix to get it evenly distributed. Use more if you really like CRAISINS. Use less or none if you don't.
• Sprinkle topping mixture evenly over the top. I like to totally cover the surface for a nice crust.
• Insert into oven, uncovered for 1 to 1.5 hours. (depending on the oven and the baking dish, sometimes if only needs 45 minutes, especially if you like it a little looser). If you're nervous, you can check "doneness" using the toothpick method- insert a toothpick in center and once it start coming out fairly clean, it's ready to come out.
• Keep an eye on the top. It should brown, but not burn. If it looks like it's headed towards burning, stick some tin foil on the top. At the end, if the top is not looking "crusty" enough, I'll stick it under the broiler for 1-3 minutes, watching for the butter to bubble a bit and the color to get nice and rich looking.
• When the top is browned and the middle seems cooked, remove from oven and let it sit on the counter for about 15 minutes (you can eat it right away if you want, but giving it time to rest, allows it to set a bit.
• This will feed a family of 4 (with leftovers for a couple of days).

MANDEL KRANSER ALMOND CROWNS

Steps:

• Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolk and orange peel. Add flour, don't over mix. If the dough is too crumbly, add a little water. Chill the dough until firm enough to roll out. Make almond paste, or mix prepared almond paste (such as Odense brand) with egg white. If the paste is too hard to mix, grate it into the egg white and add enough water to achieve a spreadable consistency. After the dough is chilled, roll out dough nice and thin. Cut the dough into 3-inch strips. Gather extra dough, repeat until dough is used up. Spread almond paste mixture on dough, leaving 1/4-inch free at the top edge. Gently roll up the dough, and place on a cookie sheet, refrigerating until firm. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove chilled dough from the refrigerator. Slice roll into 2-inch pieces, and arrange these on the cookie sheet, leaving a little room for spreading. Slice each 2-inch roll every 1/4-inch or so from the top down leaving about a 1/4-inch uncut at the bottom. Gently pull down the ends to form a crown shape. Brush each cookie with an egg wash, and sprinkle with almonds. If you prefer, use parl suukar, or edible pearl sugar, for a glittering effect. Bake 15 to 20 minutes, until pale golden in color, remove and cool.
• The recipes for this program, which were provided by contributors and guests who may not be professional chefs, have not been tested in the Food Network's kitchens. Therefore, the Food Network cannot attest to the accuracy of any of the recipes.

BRAIDED ALMOND-CREAM WREATH (KRANZKUCHEN)

Steps:

• To make the dough:
• In a large bowl, stir together the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Then add the milk and egg and stir briefly. Add the butter and knead the dough briefly by hand in the bowl. Scrape it out onto a lightly floured work surface and continue to knead it for several minutes. You may need to add 1 to 2 additional tablespoons of flour, but resist the urge to add more; the dough should be quite soft and rich. You won't be able to knead it as long as other yeast doughs, but try to get it to a point where it's no longer too sticky and can be formed into a ball.
• Place the ball back in the bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean dishcloth and place in a warm, draft-free place for 1 hour to rise.
• To make the filling:
• Place the raisins in a small bowl and add the rum and lemon juice. Set aside to macerate for 30 minutes.
• To assemble and bake:
• Heat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine the almond paste, sugar, egg white, 1 tablespoon of milk, butter, and salt; knead together by hand until well combined. Knead in the raisins and their macerating liquid. The mixture should be creamy but will still hold its shape when spread. If necessary, mix in the remaining 1 tablespoon of milk. Set aside.
• When the proofing hour is up, gently tug the dough onto a work surface. Roll out the dough to a 13 by 16-inch/33 by 40cm rectangle. You can pull the edges out to form neat corners.
• Scrape the filling onto the dough and, using a bench scraper, spread the mixture out evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-inch/2.5cm border on one of the long sides. Starting from the other long side, roll up the dough. Using a sharp bench scraper, cut the roll of dough in half lengthwise, leaving about 1 inch/2.5cm at one end still attached. Working quickly, twist the 2 strands around each other all the way down the length of the roll. Then form the wrapped dough strands into a circle. Next, slice through the end that you left attached and tuck the end pieces at both ends underneath each other to make a neat closure.
• Transfer the wreath to the prepared pan (you may need someone to help you do this) and bake for 45 minutes at the second-lowest rack position, rotating halfway through. When finished, the loaf will be golden brown all over and should sound slightly hollow when tapped. It will still be quite soft.
• To make the glaze:
• Just before the end of the baking time, heat the apricot jam over medium-high heat until loose and bubbling. When the wreath emerges from the oven, immediately brush it all over with the hot jam. Place the pan on a rack to cool.
• When the wreath has almost fully cooled, sift the confectioners' sugar into a small bowl and whisk in the water. Whisk until smooth and lump-free. You want a thick but pourable glaze. Add more sugar or a drop more water as needed. Drizzle the glaze back and forth over the entire wreath. Wait 1 hour for the glaze to set and the cake to cool completely and then slice and serve. The cake is best eaten the day it is made, but it can be kept at room temperature, loosely wrapped in plastic wrap, for 2 additional days.

SWEDISH KRINGLES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• To make the dough cut 1/2 cup butter into 1 cup flour using a knife or pastry blender. Add water as needed and mix until crumbly, leaving pea-sized chunks. On a floured surface roll the dough out to 3 or 4 inches in width. Place on a rectangular cookie sheet.
• In a small saucepan over high heat, bring 1 cup water and 1/2 cup butter to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in flour; mix until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Stir in 1 teaspoon almond extract. Spread filling over dough.
• Bake in preheated oven for 55 to 60 minutes. The pastry will fall a little as it cools.
• Meanwhile, combine confectioners' sugar, cream, 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon almond extract. Spread icing over pastry as soon as it's removed from the oven.

ALMOND CROWNED KUGEL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees.
• Cook the noodles in boiling salted water for 10 minutes.
• Drain and rinse with cold water.
• In a large bowl, combine the remaining kugel ingredients and stir in the noodles.
• Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch pan.
• Prepare the topping by combining the brown sugar, almonds and melted butter.
• Sprinkle over noodles and bake for 1 hour.