Sweet and syrupy, this is a basic homemade sauce or topping. It's a recipe you will love because it only has 4 ingredients, takes 15 minutes to make, and is a perfect blueberry topping for cheesecake, yogurt, ice cream, waffles and pancakes. It keeps well, can be made with other berries and used as pie filling.
15-minute recipe with 4 ingredients
A simple berry sauce is always a good idea to have at hand's reach. And when the same recipe doubles as a delicious topping or pie filling, even better.
We use our share of homemade strawberry sauce and cherry sauce topping.
But my favorite, or the one I use the most, is, hands down, this easy homemade blueberry sauce recipe, a wonderful topping that is super easy to make and can be frozen.
Eat it with yogurt, as a topping for cheesecake, with a slice of pound cake and vanilla ice cream, as a side sauce with angel food cake, with my favorite weekend buttermilk pancakes and several other breakfast foods. It's always there, almost like a perfect topping.
You only need 4 ingredients (or three if using it as a runny sauce than a topping) and can have it ready in 15 minutes!
Watch our step-by-step videos
Ingredient list
- Blueberries: when available, fresh blueberries are my first choice. But frozen ones also work very well.
- Sugar: brown sugar and white granulated sugar sweeten more, but you can use any type, like muscovado, coconut, or powdered sugar.
- Liquid: cold water and/or fresh lemon juice make the rest of this recipe. Citrus balances the juicy blueberries well and gives the sauce a fresh tone.
- Cornstarch: it acts as a thickener and binding agent and is necessary when you need a firmer topping for cheesecake or a blueberry pie filling. You can omit it if you want a more fluid sauce.
Quantities are listed on the recipe card towards the end of this post. The Ingredients page has more details and lists the brands we use.
Variations
As you can imagine, this basic recipe can be adapted to any berry, even cherries, like the one we use in the Chocolate Ice Cream with Cherries.
- Some great pairings: blackberries with orange juice, strawberries with orange or lime, raspberries with lemon.
- Extracts: use pure almond extract or vanilla, which pair very well with berries. I recommend just a few drops; we don't want to take away from the fresh blueberry flavor.
- Lemon zest: add it if you want an extra punch of lemon. I sometimes find it adds a bit of sourness. So go easy the first time.
How to make a berry sauce
- Saucepan: use a small or medium pan unless you're making a very large batch. Make sure it has high sides.
- Cook over medium heat until it comes to a low boil, and the blueberries start to release their juices. If necessary, reduce to low heat to avoid sticking.
- Cornstarch mixture: the sauce thickens as it cools, so see how it goes the first time and adjust in the future.
How to thicken the blueberry sauce
As it cooks and some of the liquid evaporates, the sauce will naturally thicken and the sugar and water will create a syrup.
But you might like to have a thicker consistency if you're using it as pie filling or berry topping for cheesecake or a fruit tart. That's where we need to go a step further.
Cornstarch: it's my favorite thickener as it does a good job without altering the fresh fruity flavor. The blueberry mixture will resemble a sauce with gelatin.
Vintage Kitchen Tip
Always dissolve cornstarch in liquid (cold water or juice) before adding it to a sauce. This is called a cornstarch slurry, and it's the way to avoid lumps in the sauce.
How to serve this sauce
These are a few of my favorite ways of using this fresh blueberry sauce or topping.
- Cheesecake topping: transform a simple store-bought cheesecake into a fabulous blueberry cheesecake. Or use it to top your go-to homemade one. Cheesecakes freeze really well, so you can have a last-minute dessert with this thick blueberry sauce.
- For breakfast or brunch, use it as a topping for pancakes, waffles, French toast, porridge, and baked oatmeal.
- Brownie dessert: use a brownie square as a base and serve it with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream and some homemade blueberry sauce. I regularly keep frozen brownies, and this is one of my favorite ways to woo my guests. I have a post about freezer baking and desserts that might interest you.
- Cakes: use this berry sauce for pound cakes, angel food cakes, and shortcakes.
- Ice cream: this simple sauce is a simple way to transform a scoop of ice cream into an irresistible dessert. We pour it over vanilla, chocolate, and lemon ice cream.
Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Liquid: I like to use lemon juice and a little water first and check how much liquid the blueberries release, especially if using frozen berries. Then adjust for more liquid if necessary.
- Storing: there are several ways you can do this.
Refrigerator: this sauce keeps well in an airtight container (preferably glass jars) for a few weeks.
Canning: if you want to keep it long-term, sterilize the jars and proceed as you would when making jam. Here is a good post on options for how to sterilize glass jars.
Freezing: it can be frozen, especially if you don't add the cornstarch. I regularly do it and have a last-minute dessert sauce for ice cream or cheesecake for a dinner party if needed. - Large batch: if doubling or tripling this recipe, use a larger saucepan and start at medium-high heat until it's about to boil. Then lower the heat and continue cooking it. This is a great way to make it ahead and use it for different dishes.
Bonus: blueberry glaze
This is a collateral recipe you can make with this sauce: drizzle it over ice cream or use it as a pancake and cheesecake topping.
After you make it, mash the blueberries with a potato masher or fork to release as much juice as possible.
- Strain and let the liquid collect in a small bowl. When it's completely cold, check for consistency. If it's as thick as you want, transfer it to an airtight jar and refrigerate until ready to use. It lasts for weeks or months.
- If it's too thin, transfer it to a small saucepan and cook over low heat until it thickens to your liking. If necessary, add an extra teaspoon of cornstarch slurry (½ teaspoon of cornstarch dissolved in 1 teaspoon of cold water) to thicken it quickly without losing volume.
Use it as pie filling
This simple blueberry sauce can double as a blueberry filling.
The amount of cornstarch used varies, as we want the pie filling to cut easily and not have a pool of juice.
My formula: I use 1 tablespoon of cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup of water for every cup of blueberries, ¼ cup of sugar, and a touch of lemon juice or zest.
Related recipes you might like:
One last thing
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Blueberry Topping (4 ingredients)
Ingredients
For a fluid sauce:
- 2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
- 2-4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3-5 tablespoons sugar
For a thicker sauce or topping:
- 1-2 teaspoons cornstarch OR
- 1-2 tablespoons blueberry jam
Instructions
For regular sauce:
- In a medium saucepan put blueberries with lemon juice and sugar.
- Mix and cook over medium heat.
- Frozen berries: they already have extra water from the freezer so I don’t recommend adding any from the beginning.
- Fresh berries: I like to add a tablespoon of water from the start. But you can see how it goes and add some later.
- Cook, mixing every now and then to avoid blueberries from sticking but try not to smash them.
- In about 5 minutes, depending on your stove, the juice and sugar will start to become syrupy.
- At this point, you can taste and add more sugar or liquid.
- You can let the sauce thicken a few more minutes.
- Take into account that it will thicken as it cools.
For a thicker sauce:
- If you know you want a thick, gelatin-like sauce, add 1-2 teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in a tablespoon of water, from the beginning.
- When it boils you will have a feeling of how much the sauce is thickening.
- Let it boil a minute or two if it’s too watery.
- Take into account that it will thicken as it cools.
- Alternatively, you can add some store-bought blueberry sauce to it when you remove it from the stove.
Notes
Refrigerator: this sauce keeps well in an airtight container (preferably glass jars) for a few weeks.
Canning: if you want to keep it long-term, sterilize the jars and proceed as you would when making jam. Here is a good post on options for how to sterilize glass jars.
Freezing: it can be frozen, especially if you don't add the cornstarch. I regularly do it and have a last-minute dessert sauce for ice cream or cheesecake for a dinner party if needed. Customize: consider adding more or less sugar and more or less citrus juice to adapt the sauce to your liking. When you remove it from heat, use a ground spice like cinnamon or almond extract for a different flavor. You can use other berries and change the citrus juice if you want to: blackberries with orange, strawberries with lime or orange, or raspberries with lemon.
Kels says
Very easy and easy to adjust! I saw it wasn't getting thick enough for me with one teaspoon of cornstarch so in the middle of cooking I added a second. Delicious and the perfect topping for my vanilla depression cake!
Paula Montenegro says
So happy to know it worked Kels!
Barb says
It was my first time making it. Delicious!!!! I put to much starch but it came out as expected. Easy to make and now all I want to do is make more berry sauces. Thank you for sharing and the added tips.
Paula Montenegro says
So happy to know it came out well Barb! Have a great weekend.
rosetta m cafin says
Can I substitute monk fruit and erythritol for sugar.
Paula Montenegro says
Hi Rosetta, I never used them, but if they're commonly used to sweeten they probably work in terms of flavor. I don't know about the texture though.