Wahay soup

This soup is pronounced ‘Wa-Hay’! Because it started with wahay moment using whey. My mum and I were making ricotta with whole milk (see here). Usually the leftover whey – which is nutritious and body-building – goes into a jug, to be added to smoothies, dips, sauces and curries, bit by bit. This time we decided to try and make the real whey ricotta, which skilled cheesemakers make from the whey left behind when making other types of cheese. We simmered it and did all the right things but it only made one or two curds. We added more lemon juice to see if that did the trick but we were left with a tart lemony broth. While I researched and found out that you can’t actually make ricotta from ricotta whey (only the whey from harder cheeses, which leave behind much more of the milk solids), my mum got busy turning our lemony whey into a delicious, light soup with some garlic, onion and ginger, along with some fresh thyme and some chopped bottle gourds.

To give it oomph we made some quick gram dumplings and sat down to probably one of my favourite lunches. You could also serve this with pasta or potatoes, if you prefer. This has reignited my love of marrows, which are delicious instead of the bottle gourds. If you’re making whole-milk ricotta (see here) then you must make this.

Serves 4

1.3–1.5 litres whey, left over from making one batch of whole-milk ricotta (see here)

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3cm (1¼ in) piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped

3 sprigs of thyme

1 tsp sea salt

½–½ tsp freshly ground black or white pepper

4 tbsp lemon juice

1 medium marrow, cubed, or 2 bottle gourds

1 whole pointed hispi cabbage or handful of softer leaves like beetroot greens

FOR THE DUMPLINGS (OPTIONAL)

90g (¾ cup) gram flour

1 tsp baking powder

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 medium eggs

1½ tbsp extra-virgin olive oil or melted ghee

2 tbsp chopped dill

1 Start by making the dumplings, if desired. In a bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, adding salt and pepper to taste.

2 In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and oil until just combined. Make a hole in the centre of the flour mixture and add the egg mixture. Fold together with a rubber spatula until thoroughly incorporated; the batter will be very thick and sticky. You can make this ahead of time and keep in the fridge until you’re ready to go.

3 For the soup, put the whey, onion, garlic, ginger and thyme in a large pan and bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. With wet hands, roll the dumpling dough into eight balls. Bring the soup to the boil then add the dumplings, marrow and cabbage. Cook for 5 minutes, until the dumplings bob on the surface. Cut one in half to check they are cooked all the way through.

4 Reduce to a simmer, add the salt and pepper and the lemon juice and continue to cook for about 5 minutes more, then add any really soft leaves (spinach, chard or beetroot greens). Remove from the heat and serve immediately.

TIP

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If you find it hard to shape the dumplings, try chilling the batter for about 3 hours beforehand. Otherwise you could simply drop the batter in teaspoonfuls at a time without shaping – they will look lovely and rustic.