Cold Cherry Soup
Updated November 14, 2022
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
- Total Time
- About 30 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
5 cups water
½ cup sugar
½ cup red wine
¼ teaspoon salt
Grated zest of ½ lemon
1 ½ pounds sweet, dark cherries
1 cup drained yogurt
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)
28 grams carbs; 5 milligrams cholesterol; 147 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 2 grams fat; 2 grams fiber; 96 milligrams sodium; 4 grams protein; 25 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Pit the cherries, and place the pitted cherries in a bowl and the pits in a large soup pot. Add the water to the pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer five minutes. With a skimmer, remove the pits from the water. Add the sugar, red wine, salt and lemon zest, and bring back to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil five minutes, then add the cherries. Bring to a simmer, turn the heat to low, cover and simmer five minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Step 2
Place the yogurt in a large bowl and slowly whisk in a cup of the liquid from the soup once it is no longer simmering. Whisk until the mixture is smooth. Slowly add the rest of the soup, and whisk or stir until smooth. Allow to cool, stirring from time to time, then refrigerate until cold. Before serving, you will have to stir or whisk again, as the liquid and yogurt will separate. Still, the soup is easily homogenized.
- Step 3
Serve in bowls or in glass tumblers. If you wish, garnish with additional halved, pitted fresh cherries.
Advance preparation: The soup will keep for two or three days in the refrigerator. (I found myself snacking on the leftovers -- very refreshing on a hot summer day.)
Private Notes
Comments
I grew up on Hungarian cold cherry soup that my grandmother and mother made. This version is good. I like the yogurt and red wine addition but I made it with sour cherries (which can be hard to find. You need a tree or a friend with a tree). Even with the sour cherries it was a bit sweet so I would cut the sugar to about ½ or ⅔. Also, adding a cinnamon stick and/or cloves while cooking (then removing them after cooking) gives it a wonderful additional flavor.
A much easier way to do this is to start with a jar of tart Morello Cherries (Trader Joe's are ideal). Simmer the juice long enough to infuse the cinnamon. Work in your dairy, whether that's yogurt, frozen yogurt, vanilla ice cream or cream. Then add red wine.
The recipe has a major flaw: it misses the part that the soup is made of SOUR cherries (Prunus cerasus), not normal ones. That's why it ended up too sweet.
I made this a few days ago. I used dark fully ripe plums. Followed the directions and used cabernet sauvignon as the wine. A couple of comments, I used Greek yogurt, I found no need to strain this, there were at most 1 and a half teaspoons of liquid removed after straining. I found the final product a bit too tart so I added perhaps half a cup of honey flavored Greek yogurt at the end. Great dish, the wine flavor is subtle but noticeable if you know it is there beforehand. Would make again!
I cooked for longer than specified in the recipe and the alcohol in the wine did not burn off. be warned: as written, this is an alcoholic soup, and there are many reasons you may not want that
I’m glad I read the comments before making this summer treat. Added a few cloves and a piece of cinnamon bark which gave it a nice taste. I think I’ve been missing an easy dessert or even appetizer in my life but that has now been remedied. Now on to other berries!