Want to kick your weekend breakfast table up 1,000 notches? You can make this extraordinarily yummy blueberry sauce in about fifteen minutes with very minimal effort. And you probably have all the ingredients you need in your pantry and freezer. Yes, freezer. I’m using budget-friendly frozen blueberries to create the most indulgent topping for All. Of. The. Things.
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“Blueberry compote is the BEST. I make this with rosemary added to the initial blueberry simmer. It’s perfect for Choux buns or shortcake.”
Rachelle
Ingredients
This blueberry sauce recipe uses just four ingredients. That’s it!! And the results are BEYOND. (That’s my favorite place, BEYOND. It’s where all the good stuff happens!) Here’s what you’ll need:
- Frozen Blueberries: I like using frozen blueberries over fresh for a few reasons. First, they’re usually way more affordable and available year-round. They’re also frozen at peak ripeness, so you know you’re only getting the best! And finally, frozen blueberries cook down and release their juices easily, making them perfect for sauces like this one.
- Sugar: This dissolves into the sauce and helps to create a sweet, syrupy consistency.
- Lemon: I use both the juice and the zest of a lemon in this sauce. The acidity and bright flavor from the lemon help to cut through the sweetness and add a nice tanginess.
- Cornstarch: This is a thickener for the sauce, creating a luscious texture that coats whatever you pour it on.
- Water: Helps to dissolve the cornstarch into a slurry (which prevents clumping) and allows the sauce to simmer without becoming too thick too quickly.
Can I Use This Recipe With Other Berries?
You can absolutely sub blueberries with your favorite berry. Try strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries, and even pitted cherries. Choose your own adventure! (Please leave a comment if you remember that book series. I want to celebrate how old we are on a public forum.)
Is this the same thing as blueberry syrup?
Sauces and syrups are two different things. Syrup is a sugar solution that’s usually free of solids. A sauce is any liquid you put on your food. It can often contain solids. You can use this recipe to make a delicious blueberry syrup by straining the blueberries out of the sauce. I don’t know why you’d do that, but you’re allowed to make erratic decisions. I get it. One time I married a dude in front of an Elvis impersonator. (It didn’t turn out well. #obvi)
What pairs well with blueberry sauce?
I mean, I hate to get all poetic here, but how do I count the ways?? This sauce can go on EVERYTHING. I can list a baker’s dozen just off the top of my head: pancakes, waffles, French toast, buttered toast, biscuits, cornbread, banana bread, ice cream, cheesecake, pound cake, oatmeal, yogurt, cottage cheese; you name it!
Check out these easy and budget-friendly recipes that almost scream for a sweet dollop:
How To Store Blueberry Sauce
Store this sauce in your fridge in a squeaky clean airtight container. It will keep for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze blueberry sauce. Store it in an airtight container with plastic or beeswax wrap directly on the surface of the sauce. It will keep for up to 3 months. Then, thaw it out in your refrigerator overnight. I recommend freezing it in 1 cup portions, so you’re only thawing as much as you need.
Blueberry Sauce
Servings 16 2 Tbsp eachIngredients
- 2 cups frozen blueberries ($2.72)
- 1/2 cup sugar ($0.48)
- 1 lemon ($0.58)
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch ($0.06)
- 3/4 cup water, divided ($0.00)
Instructions
- Place a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add the blueberries, the sugar, and 1/2 cup of the water. Stir to incorporate.
- Use a vegetable peeler to zest the lemon in long strips. Then juice the lemon. Add the zest and just 1/2 tablespoon of the juice to the pot.
- When the mixture comes to a boil, use a separate bowl to mix the cornstarch into 1/4 cup of water, until it is completely dissolved. Add the cornstarch slurry to the blueberries and stir until incorporated.
- Continue to stir until the syrup in the blueberry sauce has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Take the syrup off the heat, allow to cool, and remove the strips of lemon zest. It will thicken as it cools. Enjoy!
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Nutrition
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How to Make Blueberry Sauce — Step by Step Photos
Place a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add 2 cups of frozen blueberries, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/2 cup of the water. Stir to incorporate.
While the blueberries come to a sputtering boil, use a vegetable peeler to zest the lemon in strips. Then juice the lemon. You will use 1/2 tablespoon of juice for this recipe. Reserve the rest for a different recipe.
It will take about 7 to 10 minutes for the blueberry mixture to come to a sputtering boil. Once that happens, use a fork to mash the blueberries against the walls of the pan.
Add the 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice and the lemon zest to the pan. Stir to incorporate. In a separate bowl, mix the tablespoon of cornstarch into the remaining 1/4 cup of water, until it is completely dissolved. Add the cornstarch slurry to the pan and stir until it is fully mixed in.
Continue to stir the blueberry sauce until the syrup coats the back of a spoon. This will take about 3 to 5 minutes. When you drag your finger over the back of the spoon, it should leave a mark that the syrup does not seep back into. Take the sauce off the heat, allow it to cool. The sauce will thicken as it cools. Enjoy!
I just discovered your website and I like the way you have the items boxed in yellow that when you click on it it take you to another recipe like in the Stromboli recipe it has pizza sauce and dough boxed in for those recipes. I tried the Garlic butter baked cod last night and it was excellent! I saw the recipe for fish tacos and Stromboli those will be my next adventure.
Thank you and your crew for this website
Tom
can you water bath it
We haven’t tested it for water bath canning and can’t comment on that. XOXO -Monti
Made it was blueberries and juneberries. Used it on ice cream and oatmeal great flavor
Dear Ms Monti Carlo,
Please forgive me. In the text above you say ” not to get all Shakespearean on you, but let me count the ways”. I regret to inform you that Shakespeare did not say that. That quote is from a sonnet by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. It starts “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways….etc”.
Your blueberry sauce looks luscious and I really appreciate having a simple, manageable recipe to use rather than canned pie filling. I wonder if you might put this sauce in a baking dish and put biscuit dough on top of it,to make a cobbler? What is your opinion about that?
Leslie! Thanks for correcting me! Especially as I was giving credit to a man for a woman’s words. #SHUDDER
As far as the cobbler idea, I say why not? Experimenting is the joy of a kitchen. At the worst, you’ll have biscuits drenched in blueberry sauce.
I would eat that ALL DAY LONG. XOXO -Monti
I accidently made this a few weeks ago because I have a freezer nearly full of blueberries from my bushes and have made enough muffins, cobblers and just dumping in yogurt so just figured I’d cook some up. I used Splenda because of my husband’s diabetes and just used a dab of bottled lemon juice. He used it on his almond meal waffles and I put some on a little ice cream. So good!
Adding this to my paprika 3 recipe collection! Just wanted to say I love Monti and the other new contributors! Of course Beth is an icon and I still love her, but Monti has me absolutely cracking up reading her intros– She is so funny! Thanks Budget Bytes for being one of my favorite places on the internet <3333
I’m so glad you think so, Courtney! I absolutely love Monti’s writing as well, and that’s why I thought she was going to be the perfect fit for Budget Bytes. :)
Has this been published on the site before? I’ve been making this exact recipe for years-well a little less sugar, typically about ⅓ c-ant loving it. I usually make it with fresh blueberries when they are in season. I can promise you that it never lasts in my fridge a full 2 weeks. In addition to using it as a desert sauce-like over pound cake-it’s great on pancakes and on meats such as roast pork or even grilled chicken.
This hasn’t been published on the site before. Great minds! XOXO -Monti
Public librarian here! Choose Your Own Adventure is still in print (many of the older ones have been reissued and there are new titles, too), and enjoyed and requested by kids. So who knows how old anyone is?! :)
This makes me so happy! I know what book(s) I want to get my 11yo for Christmas now! I loved the Choose Your Own Adventure books and would often read them multiple times just to play out as many options as possible.
SAAAAAMMME!!!!! Awesome. I’m glad I’m not the only one. XOXO -Monti
Blueberry compote is the BEST. I make this with rosemary added to the initial blueberry simmer. It’s perfect for Choux buns or shortcake.
Oooooh Rachelle!! Adding rosemary is such a good call!! I love that tip. Thank you for sharing it. XOXO -Monti