I always refer to this recipe as Grandma Jeannie’s Noodle Pudding. Grandma died when I was six years old and I never saw her make this treat; but Anna Mae, the wonderful woman who worked for my family for 60 years, made them every year for Break Fast. She told me they were Grandma’s recipe and I guess that idea stuck. At some point, over 30 years ago, when Break Fast moved to my house, Anna Mae started making the noodle puddings in my kitchen. I used to stand next to her and watch her boil the noodles and mix them up with cottage cheese and sour cream etc.-tasting as she went along. Anna Mae liked to bake the puddings in tin foil muffin pans that she bought near her apartment uptown. Three years ago, shortly before she died, Anna Mae made her last noodle puddings with me. I bought large 12 portion non-stick muffin pans to make life easier for her; but she wasn’t happy using them; and insisted on using up her foil pans first.
Last year was the first time I made the noodle puddings by myself-without Anna Mae by my side. You know what-they weren’t very good. I guess I wasn’t ready-or maybe I hadn’t done enough tasting as I went along. This year, I made them again. I remembered Anna Mae added a lot of salt to the water before she put the noodles in. I channeled her hand pouring in the salt and it worked. They were delicious-just the right balance of salt, sugar, cottage cheese and cinnamon. The baton has been passed. Anna Mae never used a written recipe. She cooked from her heart and head. I have worked out her recipes so that my children and grandchildren can access their forebears a little bit through food memory. In some cases, that is all we have.
When my Mother stopped eating dairy products, Anna Mae came up with a way of adding apples instead of cheese to the mix. Try my Noodle Pudding with Apples and Arils!
Note: You can definitely make these puddings with butter. I find them too rich that way; so I use Earth Balance margarine.
Preheat oven to: 350° F. Spray muffin tins and set aside.
While noodles are boiling, beat eggs in mixing bowl with sugar and cinnamon. When noodles are al dente, drain them in a colander. Add drained noodles and margarine to the egg mixture. Stir well. Add cottage cheese and sour cream. Stir again. Taste! Add more sugar, salt and cinnamon if necessary.
Fill greased muffin tins to the top and sprinkle them with cinnamon. Bake 40 minutes or until the tops have browned. Despite having sprayed non stick pans, I run a spatula around the outside of the puddings to assure that they come out easily. You can either invert pan and release muffins onto cooling rack or lift them out carefully with spatula. I'm happier lifting them out to be sure no noodle is left behind. Serve noodle puddings warm with sour cream on the side.
To freeze: Cool puddings completely and freeze them in single layers separated by waxed paper and wrapped tightly in foil. Defrost completely before reheating in 350° F. oven for about 10-15 minutes.