Fruit Soup is a delightful and unexpected dish that transforms fresh and dried fruits into a lightly sweetened, fragrant soup that can be enjoyed warm in winter or chilled in summer. This traditional Scandinavian and European dish might sound unusual if you’ve never tried it, but it’s absolutely delicious and wonderfully versatile. The combination of mixed fruits simmered with warm spices like cinnamon and cloves creates a naturally sweet broth that’s both comforting and refreshing. The fruits become tender and flavorful while releasing their natural juices into the liquid, creating a beautiful ruby-colored soup that’s loaded with vitamins and antioxidants. Perfect as a light breakfast, an elegant dessert, or even a palate cleanser between courses, fruit soup is surprisingly easy to make and can be customized with whatever fruits you have on hand.
Serving Quantity: 6 servings
Cooking Time: 40 minutes (plus optional chilling time)
1. Ingredients
- 1 cup dried apricots, halved
- 1 cup pitted prunes
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries or cherries
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 2 medium apples, peeled and diced
- 2 ripe pears, peeled and diced
- 1 orange, zest and juice
- 1 lemon, zest and juice
- 6 cups water
- 1/2 cup sugar or honey
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 4 whole cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup cold water
- Greek yogurt for serving
- Fresh mint leaves for garnish
2. Nutrition Information Per Serving
- Calories: 245
- Protein: 2g
- Carbohydrates: 62g
- Fat: 1g
- Fiber: 6g
- Sodium: 15mg
3. Prepare the Dried Fruits
Place the dried apricots, prunes, dried cranberries or cherries, and raisins in a large bowl. Pour enough warm water over them to cover completely. Let them soak for about 15 minutes to soften and plump up. This rehydrates the fruit and makes them tender more quickly during cooking. After soaking, drain the fruits and set them aside. Cut the apricots in half if they’re whole, and cut any very large prunes in half as well.
4. Prepare the Fresh Fruits
Peel the apples and pears, then cut them into quarters. Remove the cores and seeds. Dice the fruit into bite-sized pieces about three-quarters of an inch. Try to keep the pieces relatively uniform in size so they cook evenly. Keep the apples and pears separate from the dried fruits for now.
5. Zest and Juice the Citrus
Use a zester or fine grater to remove the zest from the orange and lemon, being careful to only get the colorful outer layer and not the bitter white pith underneath. Set the zest aside. Cut the orange and lemon in half and juice them, removing any seeds. You should get about one-third cup of orange juice and 2 to 3 tablespoons of lemon juice.
6. Combine the Base Ingredients
In a large pot, combine the 6 cups of water, sugar or honey, orange juice, lemon juice, orange zest, lemon zest, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and ground cardamom. Stir everything together over medium heat until the sugar dissolves completely. The mixture should smell wonderfully aromatic with all those warm spices.
7. Add the Dried Fruits
Once the liquid is heated and the sugar has dissolved, add all the soaked dried fruits to the pot. The apricots, prunes, cranberries, and raisins should all go in now. Stir everything together and bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium-high heat.
8. Simmer the Dried Fruits
Once the soup reaches a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low so it’s just gently simmering. Let the dried fruits cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. The fruits will become very tender and start releasing their flavors into the liquid. The broth will begin taking on a beautiful deep color from all the fruits.
9. Add the Fresh Fruits
After the dried fruits have cooked for 15 minutes, add the diced apples and pears to the pot. Stir gently to combine everything. Continue simmering for another 10 to 12 minutes until the fresh fruits are tender but not falling apart. You want them soft enough to eat with a spoon but still holding their shape.
10. Check the Sweetness
Taste the soup and adjust the sweetness if needed. Depending on how sweet your fruits are naturally, you may want to add a bit more sugar or honey. Remember that the soup will taste slightly less sweet when served cold, so if you’re planning to chill it, you might want it a bit sweeter now.
11. Make the Cornstarch Slurry
In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and quarter cup of cold water until completely smooth with no lumps. This creates a slurry that will thicken the soup slightly and give it a beautiful glossy appearance. Make sure there are no dry clumps of cornstarch remaining.
12. Thicken the Soup
While the soup is gently simmering, slowly pour in the cornstarch slurry while stirring constantly. Continue stirring for about 2 minutes as the soup comes back to a gentle simmer. The liquid will thicken slightly and become glossy and syrupy. It should coat the back of a spoon but still be thin enough to pour easily.
13. Remove the Whole Spices
Turn off the heat and fish out the cinnamon sticks and whole cloves with a slotted spoon. These have done their job of flavoring the soup, and you don’t want anyone biting into them. The soup should smell incredible at this point, fragrant with fruit and warm spices.
14. Serve Warm or Chill
You can serve the fruit soup immediately while it’s still warm, which is comforting and perfect for cold weather. Ladle it into bowls and top with a dollop of Greek yogurt and fresh mint leaves. The cool, tangy yogurt contrasts beautifully with the warm, sweet soup. Alternatively, let the soup cool to room temperature, then transfer it to a container and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight until completely chilled.
15. Serve Cold
If serving chilled, ladle the cold fruit soup into bowls or glasses. The soup will have thickened slightly as it cooled. Top each serving with a generous spoonful of Greek yogurt or whipped cream, and garnish with fresh mint leaves. You can also add fresh berries on top for extra color and freshness.
16. Tips for Success
The beauty of fruit soup is its flexibility. Use whatever dried fruits you have or prefer. Dried figs, dates, or dried peaches all work wonderfully. You can also adjust the ratio of dried to fresh fruit based on what’s available. Soaking the dried fruits is important because it shortens the cooking time and ensures they become tender. Don’t skip this step or your soup will take much longer to cook. The combination of orange and lemon adds brightness and prevents the soup from being too sweet. The citrus balances all the fruit flavors perfectly. Whole spices give better flavor than ground ones in this recipe because they infuse the liquid without making it cloudy. If you only have ground cinnamon, use 1 teaspoon instead of the sticks. The cornstarch thickening is traditional but optional. If you prefer a thinner, more brothy soup, you can skip this step entirely. For a more adult version, add a splash of red wine or port to the soup after cooking for depth and complexity. This makes an elegant dessert for dinner parties. Fruit soup keeps beautifully in the refrigerator for up to five days, and the flavors actually improve as it sits. The fruits continue absorbing the spiced syrup and become even more delicious. This soup freezes well too. Freeze in individual portions and thaw overnight in the refrigerator when ready to eat. Serve it over vanilla ice cream or pound cake for an easy but impressive dessert. The warm soup melting the ice cream is particularly delicious. For breakfast, serve chilled fruit soup over hot oatmeal or cold granola with yogurt. It adds natural sweetness and lots of fruit without any processing. You can make this soup completely sugar-free by using only the natural sweetness of the fruits and perhaps adding a bit of stevia or monk fruit sweetener if needed. Fresh berries like strawberries, blueberries, or raspberries can be stirred in at the very end of cooking for bursts of bright, fresh flavor. In Scandinavian countries, fruit soup is often served as a traditional Christmas dish, either as a first course or dessert. The warm spices make it perfect for holiday meals.
