Rote grütze, or red grits, with white wine

Alcoholic beverages American cuisine

Ah, a true comfort food dessert I have tried out with some new twists...but the traditional version is also quite wonderful. This is a northern German dessert with red fruits. Often this is made with currants and berries, but also with plums. One of my versions used plums: an organic cherry plum, santa rosa plums and a few Japanese shira plums. Add cranberries and raspberries for good red fruit contrasts. If you make an all yellow fruit version, then it is Gelbe Grütze. Mirabella and yellow raspberries work well for that. Sapa (http://www.nudo-italia.com/categories/4) and sumac really enhance the flavors of the plums. See my recent recipes for more background on those. You can make this without those and still savor.In larger batches you can also process and can. Canned Rote Grütze makes a great holiday gift. I first had this in the restaurant at KaDeWe in Berlin with my sister. It quickly became a family favorite. Warm plums make a luscious version. Since the first batch that I made was gone so quickly, there has been a cry for more. So I just made another batch adding in some roque blueberries and red raspberries which you can see cooking in the pot of the last photo. Cranberries are great for a festive addition.