What to make when my youngest comes home for a visit

The answer to that implied question is Lokshen mit Kaese noodles with cheese made with kale noodles.

My youngest is working as a counselor at the camp my husband attended fifty summers ago. The same camp where my sister worked as a baby sitter and as a counselor, where my aunt worked as camp librarian and teacher and where my cousin worked as a teacher. I worked at a different branch of the camp for two summers.

I believe that my son took the job purely for mercenary reasons. What I think my son didn’t expect, and I certainly didn’t expect is that this job as a counselor to rising fifth graders made him grateful  for his parents and his teachers who were mostly patient with him during his years of maximum bone headedness. 

I think my son now gets why we yelled at him, now that he has to explain to a group of ten year olds why using a Super Soaker is a really bad idea inside the bunk.

This is not what I expected from this summer.

It was delightful seeing him last night. I made him one of his favorite meals. It is very comforting food.I made this batch  of noodles with kale because my youngest tends not to eat vegetables. I finally figured out how to properly grind up the kale .

Green Lokshen mit Kaese

Cook one cup of frozen kale ( collard greens or spinach are fine here too)  and allow to cool

Puree the greens in a blender with two raw eggs

Put three cups of flour in a large bowl

Add the egg/greens  to the flour mixture

begin mixing with your hands

Add one more egg and  knead the mixture until it is a smooth mass. If it is sticky mess add a bit more flour. It’s important to knead the mixture well to develop the gluten in the flour. cover the bowl and go away for at least an hour. The dough needs a rest. You can also put the dough into the fridge over night and roll it out the next day.

After you have leaned you counter , and let the dough rest it is time to roll out the dough. Old cook books talk about rolling noodles out on a noodle board. a flour dusted tea towel is a great substitute for a noodle board ( ( and I don’t exactly know what a noodle board is ). That is it makes rolling the noodles out easier and clean up is easier as well.

 

Cut the noodles in a shape that makes you happy. I use a pie crimper to get a rippled edge. A pizza cutter is fine, a plain sharp  knife is fine as well.

Let the cut noodles sit for 20 minutes or so before you boil them. You want the outer surface to dry a bit before cooking. These noodles cook quickly and may be done in 5-7 minutes.

Drain the noodles when they are done. return them to the pot with a healthy knob of butter. Add more butter if you are feeling decadent, less if if  are not. Turn the heat under the pot to medium. Let the butter melt. Add about a pound of cottage cheese (no, not  the low fat kind) to the pot and stir. If you have farmer cheese or ricotta cheese in your fridge you can add that. Then break three eggs and mix them well, add them to the pot and turn the heat down to medium low. Add salt to taste and lots of black pepper.

Serve with a green salad, because all of that dairy NEEDS a green salad to balance it out.

Yes you can use a different vegetable puree. I have made beet noodles and I suppose that in the fall I will make orange squash noodles.

 

My son claimed that he wasn’t hungry after his late afternoon snack of half a dozen dinner rolls with cheese. But he did sit down with us and eat a few servings of Lokshen mit kaese.

After doing four loads of laundry, watching TV, playing Guitar Hero and sleeping in his own bed, he went back to camp.