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Homemade Blueberry Sauce comes together in just a few minutes. Try a spoonful with your morning yogurt, dolloped over a stack of pancakes, or spooned on top of cheesecake for a delicious treat!
I seriously can’t get over the fact that our little babe goes back to school in a month.
I don’t know if it was the fact that it rained the entire month of June or what, but summer has flown by and I’m all kinds of sad about it.
We’re trying to pack as much as we can into these remaining weeks while still saving time for just chilling out at home, eating ice cream and creating some pretty epic chalk designs on the driveway.
If I’m being honest, I have some serious anxiety about her going from half-day to full-day school. Trust me, she’s definitely ready, it’s Mom that’s not.
I just get this overwhelming feeling of missing her so much every single time I think about it. But I’m putting on a brave face and pumping her up for this new adventure, even though I get all teary-eyed every time we browse the school supply aisles at Target.
Everyone told us that time flies, but I just didn’t really get it until now.
One of the things we love to do together is bake – when it’s not sweltering outside. Whether it’s sweets for Elle’s lemonade stand or just a little quality time in the kitchen, we’ve been whipping up chocolate chip cookies, pineapple coconut cake and testing several cheesecake recipes to share with all of you!
If you caught my post for graham cracker crust last week, you know I’m going to share my favorite recipe for vanilla cheesecake this week. But first, I wanted to share this homemade blueberry sauce with you because it is the perfect cheesecake topping!
HOW TO MAKE BLUEBERRY TOPPING FOR CHEESECAKE
I love homemade blueberry sauce. Spooned over a slice of vanilla cheesecake? It’s absolute heaven.
The thing I love the most about blueberry sauce? The fact that it comes together on the stovetop in less than ten minutes with just a few staple ingredients.
That’s right. Fresh or frozen blueberries, water, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch are all you need.
To start, throw the blueberries, a little bit of water, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan. Bring this mixture to a low boil, stirring frequently.
While the blueberries get bubbly and happy, mix together a slurry with cornstarch and cold water.
Did you know if you add cornstarch to hot liquid, it will clump up? That’s why it’s important to make a slurry, or a mixture of cornstarch and a cold liquid, when using cornstarch to thicken a recipe. Add the slurry to your dish and the cornstarch won’t clump!
Add the slurry to the blueberries and stir, but be careful not to crush the blueberries!
Once the blueberry sauce has thickened, remove it from the heat and stir in vanilla and lemon zest for some extra flavor if you’d like.
Out of lemons? You can use orange juice and zest instead.
HOW ELSE CAN YOU USE BLUEBERRY SAUCE?
So if my recent posts on how to soften cream cheese, making graham cracker crust and how to bake cheesecake in a water bath haven’t made it clear enough, cheesecake is pretty much my fave. Which means serving blueberry sauce as a cheesecake topping is pretty much my fave.
But I also love serving blueberry sauce in a ton of other ways.
I like to stir a spoonful into vanilla Greek-style yogurt and top with a sprinkle of Coconut Pecan Granola for a fun and tasty afternoon snack.
It’s also absolutely delicious spooned over a stack of mascarpone pancakes or vanilla bean waffles for breakfast. Or make blueberry trifles or use it to top cream cheese pound cake for dessert.
Whether you’re serving this sauce up with breakfast, dessert or a midday snack, it’s sure to please the blueberry lover in your life!
Homemade Blueberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Zest of 1 lemon about 1 tablespoon, optional
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the blueberries, 1/2 cup of water, sugar and lemon juice. Stir frequently, and bring to a low boil.
- In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water.
- Slowly stir the cornstarch into the blueberries, taking care not to crush the blueberries. Simmer until the homemade blueberry sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon, about 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and gently stir in vanilla and lemon zest.
Video
Notes
- The amount of sugar that you use will depend on the sweetness of your berries, simply adjust the amount to suite your taste.
- If this sauce is too thick for you, slowly add in water until you reach the desired consistency.
- No lemons on hand? This homemade blueberry sauce recipe tastes really great with orange juice and zest.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made a Light Japanese Cotton Cheesecake (flavored with lemon juice and zest and needed a sauce to serve with it. I found your recipe for homemade blueberry sauce and knew right away that it would be the perfect sauce with my cheesecake. I was not disappointed. My husband loved it and asked for a second helping. Then, he licked the pan that I used to make the sauce clean. I will definitely be making this again. Thank you for posting this recipe.
You’re very welcome, Vanina! Your cheesecake sounds amazing!
P.S. my daughter is a diabetic so I made her some with Splenda it was really good too. Never tried freezing that will let you know how that turns out
Please do!
I made this and ended up freezing because I had so much. When it thawed it was a little thinner than what it was when I put it in but otherwise it worked out great. Thank you for the recipe
You’re so welcome, Willow! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
I loved it!!! and it’s so easy!
I’m so glad to hear that, Wendy!
How long can I keep this sauce. I have way too much to use only once. I assume it needs to be refrigerated after I make it – does it then need to be reheated next time I use it? It is delicious and I want to be able to use it again.
Hi, Shirley! I’ve never frozen this, so I honestly don’t know how it would turn out. You can reheat if you like, or I’m sure it would taste good cold. I’m so glad you liked it!
I’ve kept this in a mason jar in the fridge for 2-3 weeks. Just put a couple of spoonfuls into my yogurt…yum! Or use on banana oatmeal waffles…heat a few spoonfuls in a little custard cup so it’s warm on the waffle. I make it WITHOUT sugar and half the cornstarch…still delish!
Thanks so much for stopping by, Susan! I appreciate you taking the time to comment. Happy Baking!
-Jamie
Not a comment but a question… do you think I could use honey and/or agave nectar instead of sugar? I have a surplus of both and thought it might be good? I’m tripling the recipe though so don’t want to do this unless you know to avoid throwing away alot of blueberries! Thank you!!
Hi, Kathleen! I’ve never tried honey or agave nectar in this recipe, but I think you should give it a try. Let me know how it turns out!
It tastes great with chocolate cake!!!!
Great, Sarah! I’m going to give that a try!
I made this for my daughter who can’t have cane sugar. So I used coconut sugar and it turned out great! Thank you for a great recipe.
I’m so happy to hear that, Keith!
My first attempt with this recipe…I used 1/4 C. sugar. It turned out great. Not overly sweet. Used as a topping on fresh baked lemon bread.
Wonderful, Audrey! I love it with anything lemon!
This is wonderful! Made it to go along with cheesecake crescent bites for Thanksgiving morning.
I’m so glad you liked it, Jamie!