Warm elderberry soup with apple

Name: Warm elderberry soup with apple
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 500 g ripe elderberries, stripped from the stalks; 1 litre water; 1 cinnamon stick; 3 cloves; peel of ½ unwaxed lemon and 1 tablespoon juice; 2 apples, peeled and diced; 1 pear, peeled and diced; 80–100 g sugar; 2 tablespoons cornflour, mixed with 4 tablespoons cold water; cream or yoghurt, to serve

Updated on 9 October 2026

Makes: 4 servings
Time: 20 min + 30 min cooking
From: Elder

Ingredients

500 g ripe elderberries, stripped from the stalks
1 litre water
1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
peel of ½ unwaxed lemon and 1 tablespoon juice
2 apples, peeled and diced
1 pear, peeled and diced
80–100 g sugar
2 tablespoons cornflour, mixed with 4 tablespoons cold water
cream or yoghurt, to serve

Method

Strip the berries from the stalks with a fork and remove all green berries. Rinse the berries.
Bring the berries, water, cinnamon, cloves and lemon peel to the boil and simmer gently for 20 minutes, until the berries have burst completely. Never eat elderberries raw.
Pour the soup through a fine sieve, pressing the berries well. Discard the pulp and pour the juice back into the pan.
Add the apples, pear and sugar and simmer gently for 10 minutes, until the fruit is soft.
Stir the cornflour mixture again and pour it into the soup, stirring. Simmer for 2 minutes until the soup is lightly thickened. Add the lemon juice.
Remove the cinnamon and cloves and serve warm with a spoonful of cream or yoghurt.

Storing: 3 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer; reheat until boiling. Only eat elderberries cooked.