Toss out that old grater and set aside your food processor, potato kugel just got easier with Spiralized Potato and Fennel Kugel for your holiday meal.
This post is sponsored on behalf of the Idaho® Potato Commission. As always all opinions are my own and thank you for supporting brands that I work with.
Let’s talk kugel today. Passover is only a few weeks away and if your family is like mine a giant dish of potato kugel will be sitting on that table as part of your festive meal.
It’s actually funny when you say the word kugel in general conversation, most assume the noodle variety but in my home and to me – potato is where it’s at. If you aren’t familiar with the dish at all, kugel is essential a pudding and very popular around Passover when leavened bread and a number of other wheat products are strictly forbidden.
When people think of Passover, I think that the most common association is matzo (and our strict 8-day diet) but in reality it’s all about the potatoes. You see when your core diet is tossed out the window, potatoes become your new best friend.
Kugel, roasted potatoes, baked potatoes, boiled potatoes, mashed potatoes, potato chips, it’s all fair game and a big bag of Idaho® Potatoes gets used up very quickly. Most of the time, it’s within the first 2 days just preparing for the holiday meals!
I love it though because potatoes are a mainstay in my diet to begin with, you are alway guaranteed to see a bag of Idaho Russet Burbank Potatoes in my pantry or some fingerlings floating around. They are affordable and full of nutrition – such as potassium, vitamin c, plenty of fiber and of course naturally gluten free.
Enough nutrition talk though, we are here because we want a new version of our boring side dish right?
Yes, that’s absolutely correct.
Like I said, I love potato kugel but what I don’t love is the prep, the mess and how heavy it can be after it’s baked up. Tell me, how many kugels have you had that end up gray and mushy in the center?
Not very appetizing is it? Plus, it’s just one flavor all the way through, after a few bites you’re done (I know I am). What you need is this version. First you need to break out your spiralizer, and if you haven’t bought one yet, I don’t know what you are waiting for. Next spiralize everything, yes including the fennel and onion. Prep work takes 10 minutes – that’s it! No bloody knuckles thanks to grating on that rusty hand grater and no need to sit and drain excess liquid from your potatoes and onions.
Toss everything in a bowl with the remaining ingredients, divide equally between muffin cups and bake away. Did I mention bake time takes 35 minutes? Once it’s finished, we have perfect individual portions of crispy kugel with a flavorful interior thanks to the sweet fennel and onion.
I guarantee you will love it and it’ll become a holiday family tradition for years to come! Oh and because I know you’ll need more potato recipes to get you through the rest of Passover make sure to visit Idaho® Potatoes for many more!
Ingredients
- 1 pound Idaho® potatoes, peeled (approximately 2 large Idaho® Russet Potatoes)
- 1 large fennel bulb, stalks and outer layer removed
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 1/4 cup potato flour
- 3 large eggs
- 1/4 cup vegetable or avocado oil
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 400 degrees F.
- Using a vegetable spiral slicer (Spiralizer) with the ‘B’ blade inserted, slice the potatoes, fennel and onions. Depending on the size of your fennel, you made need to cut it in half before spiralizing.
- Place the vegetables in a large bowl and toss to combine. Add the potato flour, eggs, oil, leaves from the thyme sprigs, salt and pepper and toss again until completely coated.
- Divide the mix between 2 – 12 cup muffin tins, filling them to the top but not packing each cup tight.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 to finish baking for 25 minutes or until the tops are crispy brown and inside is soft and tender.
- Let cool in the muffin tins for 5 minutes before running a small offset spatula to release them Serve hot or at room temperature.
- Makes approximately 14 individual potato kugels
For more information on Idaho® Potatoes visit them on:
OK that does it. I have to get a spiralizer!
I love that you paired potatoes with fennel. The crispiness of this kugel is calling my name. Pinned.
What a great idea to spiralize the potatoes for these! They look delicious.
I recently bought a spirolizer to cut veggies for pickling to use in Bon Mi sandwiches. I hate to use any kitchen tool for one thing only, so I am very glad to see some recipes for a spirolizer. It also gave me ideas for making use of this tool and the wonderful way it cuts any veggie with a flick of the wrist. Keep up the good work.
It’s such a good idea to make these in individual portion sizes! And I love that you included fennel…sounds like such a nice flavor combination.
Clearly I need a Spiralizer because I need this kugel!
What a fabulous twist (hahaha) on kugel! Love the swirls of vegetables and the crispy ends! What a marvelous side!
I can’t wait to try out this recipe because 1 – I’ve never had kugel and 2 – I’ve never had fennel but been wanting to try it.
I’ve spiralized potatoes before, but never fennel. This dish is so much fun and looks so much lighter than traditional kugel. And I just LOVE those crispy potato tops!
Fabulous idea for making kugel! And what a great twist to add fennel. I’m completely in love with my spiralizer!
Yeah—I think I could handle potatoes becoming even more a part of my diet 😛 This kugel is totally perfect to me-I love onion and fennel also and they just look crispy and flavorful!
Will these keep in the fridge? If I am serving for Seder tomorrow, should I just wait and make tomorrow? How should I reheat?
Yes – they will definitely keep in the fridge! I would under bake them slightly and then just reheat in the oven to crisp back up and finish the browning on it. If you bake them all the way and then reheat, there’s a chance they may burn too much. When do you reheat, heat a 400 degrees on a sheet tray for about 10-15 minutes. They should be heated all the way through for that long. Enjoy!