<p>
<em>Serves 4 to 6</em>
</p>
<p>This soup could be served as a light lunch or dessert, and can be presented either hot or cold–although I prefer it hot. Elderberry juice is available in bottles at organic food shops. If plums aren’t in season, experiment with another tart fruit, such as gooseberries or cranberries.</p>
<p>
<strong>Soup:</strong>
<br />
• 4 1?4 cups elderberry juice<br />
• Squirt of lemon juice, plus a few pieces of lemon zest<br />
• ½ cup sugar<br />
• 4 cloves<br />
• 1 stick cinnamon<br />
• 10 Damson plums, halved and pitted<br />
• 4 pears, peeled and sliced</p>
<p>
<strong>Dumplings:</strong>
<br />
• 1 cup milk<br />
• 1 tablespoon butter<br />
• 2 teaspoons sugar<br />
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract<br />
• Pinch of salt<br />
• 2?3 cup semolina or Cream of Wheat<br />
• 1 egg</p>
<p>
<strong>To make soup:</strong>
<br />
1. In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, bring juices, sugar, cloves and cinnamon to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes at a very low temperature.<br />
<br />
2. Add plums and pears; continue cooking until soft.</p>
<p>
<strong>To make dumplings:</strong>
<br />
1. Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, combine milk, butter, sugar, vanilla and salt; bring to a simmer.<br />
<br />
2. While stirring constantly and cooking over low heat, sprinkle in semolina or Cream of Wheat and cook until mixture thickens.<br />
<br />
3. Beat egg in a bowl, then add some of the semolina mixture to the egg.<br />
<br />
4. Gradually add egg mixture back into the pan with the rest of the semolina, stirring vigorously so egg does not curdle from the heat. Remove pan from heat.<br />
<br />
5. Using a teaspoon, make small dumplings from the semolina mixture. Bring a pot of salted water to boil, then gently drop in the dumplings. Cook about 5 minutes or until dumplings rise to the top.<br />
<br />
6. To serve, divide the dumplings into bowls and add the hot soup.</p>
<p>
<hr />
<p>
<em>Margie Gibson writes about food, culture, history and natural history. Previously, she worked at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park, where she wrote about wildlife.</em>
</p>
<p>Click here for the main article, <a href=”https://www.motherearthliving.com/cooking-methods/elderberries-grow-cook-heal-with-elder.aspx”>
<strong>Elderberries: Grow, Cook, Heal with Elder</strong>
</a>.</p>
Elderberry Recipes: Elderberry Soup with Semolina Dumplings
Photo by Fotolia/denio109
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