Sweet elderberry soup with dumplings (from Holstein)

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 1 liter of juice (elderberry juice, possibly from a health food store or supermarket)
• 1 lemon(s), grated peel, untreated
• 1 stalk(s) cinnamon
• 2 cloves
• 250 ml water
• 8 g cornstarch (e.g. Mondamin)
• 4 apples, sour
• 150 g sugar
• 250 ml water
• 100 g sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 pinch of salt
• 30 g butter
• 90 g semolina
• 3 eggs
• 100 g quark

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Cooking/baking time approx. 20 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 20 minutes

Elsewhere, lilac is also called “black elderberry”, “holler” or “holderbush”, “Klüten” is Low German for “dumplings”

First, bring the elderberry juice to a boil with the lemon zest, cinnamon, and cloves. Finely grate the lemon zest, being careful not to grate too much of the white underside, which is quite bitter. The lemon zest stays in the soup later. I put the cinnamon and cloves in a single-use tea strainer and tie a tie. This allows both to be removed from the soup in a flash. Now let the whole thing steep over low heat for 15 minutes, remove the spices. Then stir the starch into the water and use it to thicken the soup. Now peel the apples, quarter them, and remove the cores. Cut the quarters into thin slices and blanch them for 2 minutes in boiling (lightly sweetened) water, remove them, drain them, and add them to the still-hot soup. In the meantime: For the Klüten (dumplings), bring the water to a boil with the lemon juice, sugar, butter, and salt. Now add the semolina, stir in, and simmer until the mixture easily separates from the bottom of the pan when stirred. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Then beat in the eggs and then stir in the quark. Before the mixture has completely cooled, scoop out almond-shaped balls with a tablespoon or ice cream scoop and cook in gently simmering water for about 20 minutes, drain well, and add to the soup. Now you have to decide: the soup tastes delicious hot, and cold it makes a light and refreshing main course in summer. If you like, you can sprinkle some chopped mint leaves over the soup for a little flavor contrast. On really hot summer days, a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream in the middle of the plate doesn’t hurt either. We are fortunate enough to be able to make our own elderberry juice from our own plants in the garden, but most others unfortunately have to go to a health food store or a well-stocked supermarket.