An assortment of kugels will soon be displayed on tables at Congregation Emanu-El B’ne Jeshurun, where people can sample them and get the chance to bring home the recipes.
On Oct. 20, a Kugel Cookoff will be open to all community members from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Attendees and a panel of judges will taste kugel dishes prepared by community members. The panel includes Bravo’s Top Chef Dan Jacobs, who owns local restaurants DanDan and Ester Ev. Jacobs is serving as the celebrity judge at this year’s kugel cookoff.
“Who doesn’t love to cook, eat, try a bunch of different things?” said event co-chair and volunteer Rachel Badt.
In addition to Jacobs, 2015 kugel competition winner Phyllis Dorf and possibly a high school student will serve as the other two judges. Synagogue Executive Director Andrew Appel has baked and tasted Dorf’s recipe since the event was last held in 2015.
“I have made her kugel since those years; We gave out the recipe to everybody,” Appel said. “It’s a winner.”
Jacobs told the Chronicle that he’s not religious, but given his upbringing, Judaism is what he most identifies with.
He remembers kugel from his childhood, through his great aunt Rose, who lived just off Devon Avenue in Chicago. “I remember going to her house and eating kugel when I was a kid. I still remember it. I still remember the flavor, the cinnamon, everything,” Jacobs said.
He said he has offered Jewish-heritage dishes at different times at his restaurant Ester Ev and will continue to do so – matzo brei, kreplach, matzo balls and, yes, kugel. Jacobs, who has appeared on Bravo’s Top Chef, said he is very much looking forward to the CEEBJ Kugel Cookoff.
Those who are not members of the synagogue must register and pay $5 to attend. Participants who are cooking can decide whether they want to create a sweet or savory kugel, and the dish will be judged within that category.
Attendees will rate the dishes, and the three judges at the event will select a kugel as the event’s winning dish. “If you come to the event, you’ll get the recipe book, so you will be able to recreate them at home,” Badt said.
The event is a “fun-raiser” that is about having fun and sharing food with the community, Badt said.
“It’s a combination of activity,” Badt said. “It’s for our congregation, but it’s [also] for the greater community. We want people to come see what we’re doing. It gets you inside into the synagogue; you’ll see what we’re a little bit about.”
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How to go
What: Kugel Cookoff
When: Sunday, Oct. 20
Where: Congregation Emanu-El B’ne Jeshurun
RSVP: Ceebj.org
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