Strawberry Sauce is a delicious addition to pancakes, ice cream, or to just eat with a spoon!
A History of Strawberries
My father loves to tell the story of the strawberries he grew in the garden when I was just a toddler. I refused to try them, until one day he would not let me out of my high chair until I ate one. From that point on there were never any strawberries in the garden. The second they started to turn pink, I would pick them and eat them.
From strawberries in the garden to strawberry soup, this sauce was a lifetime in the making! Share on XMy history with strawberries doesn’t end there. In high school we had been given tons of frozen strawberries, and I, thinking I was Martha Stewart, decided that I would make a strawberry pie. I made the crust from scratch, taking my time to make sure it was perfect, added in the strawberries and the sugar, and put it in the oven. I was so proud of myself. The thing is, these were frozen strawberries. I had no idea you were supposed to thaw them first. My beautiful pie turned into strawberry soup, mind you, it was the best strawberry soup any one had ever tasted, probably because no one has ever made strawberry soup before, but regardless it wasn’t to bad.
I’ve always loved strawberries.
Strawberry Season
In South Florida the height of our strawberry season is actually January, but thanks to the ease of transporting fruits and veggies all over the Unites States, we get to share in summer strawberry season with everyone up north. Strawberries have been incredibly cheap this summer and I always grab several containers when I’m at the store. Sometimes, I buy more than we can actually eat.
It was during one of those times I got the great idea to make homemade strawberry sauce. My husband loves strawberry ice cream, so I knew he would be head over heels for this. I started researching different recipes and I was shocked at the amount of sugar that was used to make the sauce.
You could go into a diabetic coma just reading some of these recipes.
So, of course I had to try making my own version without all the white sugar. Turns out it was not that hard and my family loved it. When my husband came home from work and saw strawberries cooking away on the stove, he was very excited!
Strawberry Sauce
For this recipe, I chose to use just four ingredients- strawberries, lemon juice, agave nectar, and a splash of vanilla. By reducing the amount of sugar used (I went from 1 cup of white sugar to 1/3 cup of agave), it really allows the strawberries to shine through.
Plus, we put the sauce on gluten free pancakes (I used GF Jules Pancake Mix) and ice cream, both of which are already sweet. My dad and stepmom came over for our pancake feast and were in love with the sauce. They were especially excited that I had packaged some in cute little jars so they were able to take some home!
Just a few little notes:
Strainer:
You are going to want a fine mesh strainer for this. I used the same one I use to rinse rice and it worked perfectly.
Hot or Cold:
You can serve the strawberry sauce hot or cold. If it is still warm, it will be thinner. It thickens as it cools.
Get a mason jar!:
This strawberry sauce makes the perfect take home gift for a brunch or ice cream social. I bought the little jars at Target for a $1.00
What are your favorite things to put Strawberry Sauce on? Chime in, in the comments!
Simply Delicious Strawberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Fresh Strawberries stemmed and cut
- 1/3 cup golden agave syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
- Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Instructions
- Combine Strawberries, agave, vanilla, and lemon juice in a small pot.
- Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently and breaking up strawberries for about 5 minutes.
- Strawberries should be soft and easily mashed.
- Strain strawberry mixture into bowl using a mesh strainer.
- Press strawberries to get as much of the juice and syrup out as possible. Place left over strawberry mash aside to use in smoothies later.
- Pour strawberry sauce back into pot and bring to a boil, stirring frequently, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.
- Use warm or refrigerate.
26 Comments
Quick and Easy Strawberry Mousse - Eat at Our Table
June 3, 2019 at 10:32 am[…] strawberry soup, but it was still tasty!), sauces. This quick and easy strawberry mousse uses my strawberry sauce recipe and whipping cream to create an easy luscious dish you will want again and again! Plus, it’s […]
SocialTech360
August 22, 2016 at 4:04 pmHow long will this last in the fridge? not that I’m expecting it to last long
Elle @ Only Taste Matters
August 20, 2016 at 4:07 pmThis sauce looks amazing and I love that you cut back the sugar! A truly delicious fruit sauce lets the fruit flavor come though and yours seems to fit the bill. Perfection! Pinned!
Alisa Fleming
August 20, 2016 at 2:53 pmThis looks like such a better pancake topper than straight up maple syrup. I’m always a sucker for fresh fruit sauces, and your version is so much healthier than most recipes.
Alexa
August 20, 2016 at 12:13 pmWe love mixing sauces like this into our coconut milk yogurt after it is done culturing. 🙂
Megan
August 20, 2016 at 12:07 amI could seriously drink that!
Sharon @ What The Fork Food Blog
August 19, 2016 at 10:07 pmOh, yum! There’s so many delicious things I’d pour this over!
Amber
August 18, 2016 at 8:24 pmYum! Pancakes with strawberry sauce is one of my favorite things ever!
jules
August 18, 2016 at 6:18 pmYUM. Just YUM!
~jules
Evi Aki
August 18, 2016 at 6:11 pmyum! i always have strawberry sauce on my waffles or pancakes. love the simplicity of this recipe.
Nutrimom
August 18, 2016 at 3:51 pmSoooo much healthier than anything you buy 🙂
Matt @ Plating Pixels
August 18, 2016 at 3:44 pmLove strawberries! Need to try this with vanilla and lemon.
Renee Sitavich
August 18, 2016 at 2:55 pmThis syrup sounds so yummy!! I agree that many recipes for strawberry syrup end up tasting more like sugar than like strawberries, so I am loving the huge sugar reduction. Now I just have to get my dog to stop eating the strawberries off my plants before I can pick them myself. I swear he has eaten more of them than I have this summer!
Klauss
August 18, 2016 at 2:50 pmYour perfect recipe once again confirms that all genius is simple!
Cricket Plunkett
August 18, 2016 at 1:23 pmYou know how much I love recipes with no refined sugar!! I don’t usually have agave, may try it with maple syrup though! I’ll have to let you know how it turns out!
Judy@ImBoredLetsGo
August 18, 2016 at 12:49 pmThanks for a delicious alternative to using all that white sugar! I bet this would even be pretty good in a glass with club soda for a refreshing treat!
amanda -runtothefinish
August 18, 2016 at 11:30 amStrawberries are soooo cheap right now, love the ideas for how to use them!
Debi at Life Currents
August 18, 2016 at 10:59 amOh my word this looks like the perfect way to start the day! My husband will love this! Thanks!
Christina | Christina's Cucina
August 18, 2016 at 10:35 amWho doesn’t love strawberries? This is a sauce I make frequently during summer months, however, I do use sugar. This is a great alternative for those not wanting to use refined sugar.
Georgianna
August 18, 2016 at 9:33 amMmmm, you totally have me craving some waffles with strawberry sauce!
Cindy Gordon (Vegetarian Mamma)
August 18, 2016 at 9:02 amTHIS has my name all over it! I am a huge strawberry fan! I love sauce on my pancakes, my ice cream my cupcakes ha! This looks amazing!
Krystal
August 18, 2016 at 7:10 amMy daughter is a strawberry fanatic. She would love this sauce!
Sylvie
August 18, 2016 at 5:33 amWhat a great sauce to have on hand, and so easy to make too!
Kelly @ TastingPage
August 17, 2016 at 10:48 pmIs there anything better than strawberries in the summer time?! Love this recipe.
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine
August 17, 2016 at 3:52 pmThe perfect sweet summery addition to so many things!
Keeley McGuire
August 17, 2016 at 3:46 pmThis looks delicious!