Rothe Gruetze (Red Fruit Pudding)

Fruit pudding was a summer favorite

Julie Mann of Eagle Spring Lake went on a hunt for old family recipes and found plenty.

“Many of the old recipes were from both of my grandmothers, who were born in 1879 and 1898,” she wrote. “I found recipes written in German, with beautiful penmanship.

“I also have an old Settlement Cook book that was well used by my mother, who was born in 1912. (I am 75). The front cover is gone, so I don’t know the copyright date.

“The binding is in tatters. I know it was used a great deal, as many pages have notations and lots of splatters.”

She also found a cookbook called “Rector’s Carte Du Jour,” copyright 1933, with “many excellent recipes and again many stained pages, so it was used by my mother.”

Some of the recipes she found had names attached to them, but most did not have dates. “So it becomes a guessing game as to the date they were used or written,” Mann wrote. “I think most of the women started cooking at around 15 to 20 years of age.”

“This is a recipe that my mother made in spring and summer. It was delicious. I have never made it but will give it a try. This recipe is from ‘The Settlement Cook Book.’”

The fruit pudding was a special treat, she recalled. Her mother bought the currants at the farmers market.

Rothe Gruetze (also spelled rote grütze ) is a typical fruit dessert from northern Germany, Denmark and other Scandinavian countries. Recipes often include fruit juice and sometimes liqueur. It is traditionally served with whipped cream or a vanilla sauce.

Rothe Gruetze (Red Fruit Pudding)

Recipe tested by Nancy Stohs

Makes 10 to 12 servings

1 quart fresh red raspberries

1 quart fresh red currants

4 cups cold water

1 ½ cups sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch dissolved in a few tablespoons of cold water

Boil berries and water a couple of minutes. Strain through a large fine-mesh strainer into a large glass measure or bowl, stirring at first and then pressing against pulp to extract as much juice as possible. (A little pulp is OK; you don’t want seeds or skins.) Return juice to saucepan and add sugar. Bring to a boil, then stir in cornstarch-water mixture.

Cook until thickened. Pour into serving dishes and refrigerate until set.

Serve cold with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Note: Fresh currants can be found in some grocery stores; we found them at Sendik's.

The Recipe Box is an ongoing series showcasing old family recipes, and the stories behind them, submitted by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel readers. Read them all at jsonline.com/recipebox.