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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.
Does this blueberry sauce need to be refrigerated? If so, how do I serve when it is cold?
Hello! Yes, you will need to refrigerated any leftover sauce. You can reheat it gently on the stove over low heat to serve later if you like. Hope this helps. Happy baking!
Jamie
I love this recipe – I have used it many times over the past couple of years. It’s easy to make and always turns out perfectly. I’ve even tried it substituting haskap or saskatoons instead of blueberries, and it is delicious every time. Thank you very much!
So happy to hear you enjoy the sauce, Sheryl! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
Thanks for the lovely and easy recipe. Made it and love it. Will become a staple. Is is absolutely amazing with double cream plain yogurt! Thanks for sharing.
So happy to hear you enjoyed the sauce, Esmien! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
I would use half the lemon next time – I can’t taste the blueberries at all. It’ll still be a good sauce but disappointed I lost my blueberries to the lemon flavor.
Hi Sarah – So glad you tried the recipe! Definitely feel free to adjust the lemon to your own tastes next time. Thanks for stopping by. Happy baking!
Jamie
It turned out great for my home made cheesecake. Thank a lot.
So happy to hear you enjoyed the sauce, Juverna! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
Can this sauce be frozen or canned? I think it can, just wondering if you’ve tried it
Hello!
I haven’t personally canned this, but hopefully someone will chime in who has! Thanks so much for stopping by!
-Jamie
This was fabulous!! I put it on Cheesecake #17 made in the instamt pot.
So happy to hear you enjoyed it, Nellie! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
Coming back to this recipe again this year as the wild blueberries are ready to pick along with the pitiful handful from our planted bushes. This is absolutely delicious and I am going to make it in the morning for Sunday pancakes. I love it as is and won’t be changing a thing, thank you for sharing the recipe with us.
So happy to hear you enjoy the sauce, Melissa! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie
Loved it, I will be making again. My family also loved it
Thanks so much, Sandra! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe.
-Jamie
I have used this recipe several time and absolutely adore it! Every 4th of July I make a batch of blueberry and a batch of strawberry to make red, white and blue short cake. It always turns out amazing! One thing I’ve found with using strawberries is that they break down very quickly so I like to add another cup of sliced strawberries right at the end after adding the vanilla and zest. Since the strawberries break down more, the sauce is a bit thicker but I guess you cannadd more water to thin it out if necessary (I like it the way it is). Thank you so much for sharing this yummy recipe!
So happy to hear you enjoyed the sauce, Shannon! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your feedback!
-Jamie