Apricot Apple Matzo Farfel Kugel for Passover
This apricot apple matzo farfel kugel was inspired by a reader who loved my first kugel recipe posted in 2013. If you like a kugel with a touch of sweet, tart and crunch, you’ll love the apricots, apples, and crisp-like topping in this recipe.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup raisins regular or golden
- 1/2 cup dried apricots chopped
- 1/2 cup hot water or red wine or orange juice or apple juice
- 4 cups matzo farfel 5-6 boards of matzo (set aside 1/3 cup for matzo crunch topping)
- 4 eggs 6 eggs if you don't use flaxseed mixture
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 stick of unsalted margarine or butter divided - (2 tblsps for crisping up matzo farfel (step 3); 4 tblsps melted for kugel (step 5), 2 tblsp melted for crunch topping (step 6) )
- 3 medium or 2 large apples peeled, cored, and sliced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice or 1/2 a lemon for squeezing
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seed mixed with 6 tablespoons of water optional - use if you want to reduce the number of eggs to 4
Matzo Crunch Topping
- 1/3 cup matzo farfel set aside from above 4 cups
- 2 tablespoons of melted butter or margarine listed above
- 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 X 13 baking dish.
- Rehydrate/soften the dried fruit (raisins and apricots) w hot water or whatever liquid you choose - let them sit while you continue with the other preparation
- Instead of buying pre-made farfel, simply place the matzo boards in a ziploc bag and use your rolling pin to break them up into little pieces. 2 boards will yield about 1 cup of farfel.
- Beat 2 of the eggs and mix with the farfel and a teaspoon of the salt. Heat a skillet to medium low, melt two tablespoons of the butter then add the egg farfel mixture, mixing frequently to be sure the pieces brown and separate. You can walk away while this cooks but return frequently to mix and separate the farfel. Once the egg is set, pieces are mostly separate and a little darker, set the farfel aside while you prepare the apples and wet ingredients.
- Peel, core, and thinly slice the apples - sprinkle with a bit of lemon juice to keep them from browning.
- In a medium bowl, beat the remaining 2 eggs (4 if you don't use the flaxseed) with the sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, and 4 tablespoons of the melted and cooled butter or margarine. Add in the applesauce, flaxseed mixture, toasted farfel mixture, and the dried fruit and it's soaking liquid. Mix until well combined.
- In a small bowl combine all the matzo crunch topping ingredients and mix well.
- In your greased baking dish, layer 1/2 the apple slices and sprinkle with a dusting of cinnamon if you'd like (optional), then add the matzo farfel mixture and then top with the remaining apples. Then sprinkle with the matzo nut crunch topping.
- Bake for approximately 40 minutes. (should get crunchy on the top and see it bubbly on the inside). You can make it ahead but be sure to reheat in the oven so the crunch returns to the topping!
Notes
The use of applesauce and the flaxseed mixture allow this kugel to come together with only 4 eggs. If you don't have the flaxseed, use 6 eggs instead.
Nutrition
Calories: 334kcalCarbohydrates: 62gProtein: 8gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 82mgSodium: 423mgPotassium: 273mgFiber: 3gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 340IUVitamin C: 2.7mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 2.4mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!