Overnight Potato Kugel

I personally am not a major potato kugel fan. I prefer less traditional (and slightly more elegant) fare like crisps or pandowdies or simple roasted sweet potatoes.  But certain members of my family are adamant about having potato kugel on Friday afternoon, Friday night, and for lunch on Shabbos. When I'm feeling ambitious and when one of the kids is willing to help peel potatoes, I try to oblige.

This recipe is nice because you put it up on Thursday night and leave it baking until Friday afternoon. Boy, does it feel good to serve up fresh potato kugel when the kids come home from school on Friday!

What's your potato kugel secret? Tell the world about your kugel by posting in the COMMENTS section. 

Overnight Potato Kugel
My mother is horrified that I use a food processor for my potato kugel. Hers is hand-grated, and every potato is grated with love. I think the food processor does a fine job, and hand grating just isn't worth the effort. NOTE: This recipe makes a LOT of kugel, but since it bakes for so long, you probably should not reduce the quantity of potatoes. The kugel might not stay moist with less volume. It does freeze well.
 
8 large Idaho potatoes (about five pounds)
2 medium onions
3/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
5 eggs

Preheat the oven to 400*. Heat the oil in a 9x13 pan (I use disposable aluminum.)

Peel the potatoes and onions. Use the finest blade on your food processor to grate them, or grate by hand if you prefer. Transfer to a large bowl. Immediately pour the hot oil over the grated vegetables. (Leave just a little bit of oil in the pan to create a non-stick surface.)

Quickly mix in the seasonings and eggs. Pour the mixture into the 9x13 pan and bake for one hour. You might want to put a large cookie sheet under the aluminum pan to catch any drips.

After an hour, turn the oven down to 200* and cover the kugel tightly. Bake for about 12-15 hours. (You can also leave it in longer; just set the temperature to 175* instead.) Serve hot. If you want, wrap some in foil and put it in your chulent.