Rote Grütze

Tarik Rose’s Rote Grütze for NDR marinates fresh mixed berries in a thickened cherry-juice syrup rather than cooking the fruit itself. It is served over its own vanilla-Schmand cream, with basil leaves and caramelized almonds.

The berries are cleaned and stripped from their stems. A vanilla pod is scraped, with its seeds reserved for the cream. In the selected sugar route, maple sugar caramelizes in a pot. Cherry juice is added, with a little of the same listed juice reserved separately for the starch slurry. The scraped pod joins the liquid, which simmers over moderate heat for about ten minutes.

The selected corn-starch option is stirred with the reserved cherry juice and added gradually until the liquid thickens lightly. It simmers a little longer. The berries enter a bowl, the hot liquid is poured over them and mixed gently, and the fruit is left to marinate and cool.

Maple syrup heats in a pan and coats the almonds; a pinch of salt may be added to taste. The almonds spread on baking paper to cool and, in this presentation, remain whole. Separately, the Schmand is mixed with the reserved vanilla seeds and some maple syrup, then seasoned with supplied lemon juice.

The cream is portioned into small bowls. Rote Grütze with a little of its same liquid goes on top, and basil leaves and the caramelized almonds garnish the dessert.