Cheese and Sauerkraut Soup

Mountain Cheese, German Bergkäse, is a hard cheese with a strong aroma. Used in soups to give a great taste. The combination with Sauerkraut is a bit strange. But it works well together. When you have a problem with your digestive system, I would not recommend the combination of cheese, cream and sauerkraut.

A couple of toppings to finsh the soup have to be prepared on the side. This recipe is from Christian Jürgens, 2 Star Michelin Chef from the Tegernsee. As always I made my own version of his recipe.

You have to start with the soup base first. This has to cook a while and reduce until it gets to the taste you are looking for.
I did not use raw sauerkraut. This soup is just a weekend treat and I used a ready made small bag of 150 g of sauerkraut, cooked and seasoned. If you have fresh sauerkraut on hand, feel free to use that. You have to wash it, blanche it and cook it before you can add it to the soup.

recipe for 4:
1 onion
1 tbsp oil
100 ml dry white wine
750 ml chicken stock
150 ml double cream
100 g creme fraiche
1 bay leave
150 g sauerkraut
salt and pepper
400 g sausage meat
100 g grated mountain cheese
1 pinch caraway seeds
150 g leek
30 g butter
1 breadstick lye

Chop the onion and soften it in the oil. Add wine, reduce and add stock. Put in tge bay leaf and cook to reduce to the flavour you like.
Now in with cream and creme fraiche and more reducing. Season.

Grate the cheese, take the pot off the heat and use a stick blender to incorporate the cheese in the soup. Tip: take out the bay leaf first. Now in with the sauerkraut. Warm up the soup again, do not bring it to boil.

In a pan in a little oil fry off the marble size meat balls. When they get brown, in with the leek rings. Finish both together in the pan.
Cut the lye breadstick in 1 cm discs and brown them in the butter.

Pour the soup on a plate an top with the other ingredients.