Rosehip Soup – Nyponsoppa: Swedish specialty

This Swedish rosehip soup is a seasonal delicacy often served with cream or vanilla ice cream as a dessert. Packed with vitamin C, this rose hip soup recipe is a shame to miss out.

When do we eat rosehip soup?

Rosehip soup is traditionally eaten in the autumn when fresh rosehips start to ripen. However, you don’t need to wait for the first frost to enjoy this delicious soup. Depending on the place where you live, you can start to collect them from September to December.

Since you can prepare this soup using dried rosehips, it can be served all year round. In nordic countries with long winters, it has become a popular wintertime treat mainly for its high level of vitamin C.

In Sweden, where rosehip soup (in Swedish Nyponsoppa) comes from, it has been traditionally eaten during Easter. The main course on Good Friday supper was traditionally served salmon with rosehip soup as a dessert.

If you want a soup we eat in spring, check this detox nettle soup.

So, what rosehips can we pick?

There are more than 300 Rosacea species, and all are edible. However, the most delicious and suitable for this recipe are dog rose (Rosa canina), sweet briar (Rosa rubiginosa), field rose (Rosa arvensis), downy rose (Rosa villosa) and burnet rose (Rosa spinosissima).

Once ripe and red they are ready for foraging.

While the outer pulp is sweet and tart, the fruit is full of seeds that can be irritating. You don’t need to remove them for this recipe! The seeds are strained with a sieve after cooking, thus saving time.

If you’re collecting them for soup, avoid rosehips that have been treated with pesticides.

When foraging rose hips, wearing long sleeves, trousers, and closed-toe shoes is best to avoid being pricked by the thorns. I usually only collect 1-2 cups from each bush so that there is something left for the wild animals.

This soup can be made of dried rosehips that you can purchase here or from rosehip powder. Rosehips are versatile; once you learn how to forage them, you can make rosehip jam, syrup, wine or tea. I like to use their seeds in homemade skincare such as rosehips seed oil, lip balm, or eye cream.

The history of Swedish rosehip soup

Today’s Swedish soup is served mainly as a dessert with whipped cream or ice cream on the top, however, it hasn’t always been the same. While In 18-century people used bread or breadcrumbs to thicken the soup, in 19 the century, potato starch and later even oat flakes as a thickener. Similarly, as some cookbooks suggested wine or raisins to add some flavors, others preferred gooseberry cordial instead. Nyposoppa developed over time with various garnish suggestions. From lemon peel, vanilla, almond, sugar, and cinnamon to more sophisticated dried cherries or pear slices.

Rosehip Soup / Nyponsoppa ingredients

• 3 cups of fresh rose hips or 2 cups of dried rosehips
• 200 ml (0.8 cups) raw sugar or honey You can also use apple juice as a sweetener
• 2 l  (8.5 cups)  water

to garnish

• grated lemon peel
• whipped cream, sour cream, whipped coconut cream, or vanilla ice cream
• cinnamon or vanilla powder
• you can use a thickener, potato starch, or potato flour(optional), I used a lot of rosehips and their pulp was a sufficient thickener.

Rosehip soup recipe: preparation steps

First step

Gather rosehips remove the stems and stalks, and wash them thoroughly under cold water.

Second step

Cut hard rosehips in half. The soft ones can stay whole.

Third step

Pour five cups of lukewarm water into a saucepan with three cups of rosehip and soak them for at least 5 hours or overnight.

Close the lid and keep it overnight to make the soup darker and tastier.   It also helps dried rosehips soften.

Fourth step

The next day, boil and cook until soft, stirring occasionally. It may take up to 20 minutes, depending on the ripeness of the rosehips.

Fifth step

Use a hand blender or an immersion blender to turn the mixture into a creamy purée

Sixth step

Strain the mixture through the muslin cloth or fine sieve

Check the consistency; if your soup is too runny, add potato starch to thicken it. If it is too thick, add water to dilute it. It all depends on how much pulp you remove with the sieve.

seventh step

mix a tablespoon of cornstarch with water, stir into a paste, and add to the rosehip soup

Add honey, raw sugar, white sugar, or another sweetener until you have the right level of sweetness.

This soup is traditionally served with almond macaroons and whipped cream.

Serving rosehip soup in style

Serve the soup warm or cold. Classic additions to the soup are a scoop of whipped cream, a spoon of vanilla ice cream, or a dollop of crème fraîche to add some acidity.

There are store-bought almond macarons for those who don’t have time to make them. Otherwise, you can use almond slivers, a sweet biscuit, or another type of cookie or toast.

When flavoring the soup you can use cinnamon, lemon, and maybe some wine when flavoring the soup.

For those of you who want to avoid refined sugar, you can sweeten the soup with something like apple juice.

If you want to be stylish, you can use high-stemmed glasses for serving a cold rose hip soup with a dash of traditional French wine.