This fresh strawberry sauce is perfect for pancakes, waffles, angel food cake, and ice cream! This simple strawberry sauce recipe is made with only 5 ingredients and is ready in 5 minutes! Plus it's healthy!
Our family has eaten our weight in strawberries this summer! It seems like every package we pick up at the store is better than the last, and we just can't get enough!
Naomi loves strawberries so much that she actually cried when we polished off a container the other day, because they were all gone! I reassured her that we would purchase some more at our next trip to the grocery store, and that seemed to help...a little.
Well, if you don't have strawberry monsters in your house, and can't always finish the strawberries you bought at the store before they start to go bad, then this Strawberry Sauce recipe is for you!
This simple strawberry sauce recipe is made with only 5 ingredients and is ready in 5 minutes! Plus it's healthy (paleo, vegan-friendly, refined sugar free, etc. etc.).
Strawberry Sauce: Ingredients & Substitutions
- Strawberries. Any berry works perfectly well in this recipe. You many need to adjust the amount of water depending on the water content of the berries you choose!
- Water. For a creamier sauce substitute coconut cream or milk, whole milk, whipping cream, half and half, etc. etc.
- Honey. Any liquid sweetener of your choosing works beautifully in this strawberry sauce recipe. I recommend using maple syrup for a vegan version!
- Vanilla Extract. If you want to get extra fancy, use vanilla beans or vanilla bean paste in place of the vanilla extract.
- Instant tapioca. I have discussed this ingredient before, and I see it as an absolute pantry staple for all things fruity. If you do not have it, tapioca starch or cornstarch can be used in place of instant tapioca, but the amount will likely vary.
How to make Fresh Strawberry Sauce
As always, I'm going to walk you through the steps in making this Strawberry Sauce.
Use a Vitamix. It should come as no surprise to you that I made this strawberry sauce recipe in my Vitamix. I absolutely love how quick and easy it is to make delicious sauces and spreads just with the touch of a button. Plus, the sauce can be as silky smooth, or chunky as you'd like!
Control the texture. Please be sure to reserve about half of a pint of strawberries, especially if you want the sauce to have a little texture. Blend most of the berries until the mixture is warm and smooth. Then add the rest and pulse to combine until the sauce reaches the desired consistency.
The strawberry sauce thickens as it cools. If you would like a thicker sauce, either add more instant tapioca, or let it cool slightly before serving!
If you don't have a Vitamix. Get one. LOL, but seriously. A food processor could work for this recipe, or a lower-powered blender. Just be aware that you will very likely not end up with an ultra-smooth strawberry sauce in the end...but it will still taste amazing.
NOTE: this recipe makes a TON of sauce. Seriously, we're talking 6 cups. If you have a small family or are having a small get together, I recommend halving the recipe!
Store/freeze
I recommend storing this strawberry sauce recipe in two ways...
- In a glass container in the refrigerator. If you plan to use it all within a few days, I recommend storing it in an airtight container in the fridge! You can either serve it cold or reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop to serve it warm!
- Freeze in ice cube trays. I used the same method I do for freezing homemade baby food to store the leftovers of this strawberry sauce recipe. To store frozen, simply pour the leftover strawberry sauce into silicone ice cube trays and freeze. Once frozen, remove the cubes from the trays and store in an airtight container in the freezer. I love to use frozen strawberry sauce in smoothies!
Strawberry Sauce: Serving suggestions.
Oh my word I can think of SO many ways to serve this homemade strawberry sauce recipe! Here are a handful:
- Over Pancakes. This sauce is superb served over a stack of pancakes with a dollop of whipped cream. My top two pancake recommendations from this site are these chocolate pancakes and these fluffy whole wheat pancakes!
- With Waffles. Keeping in the breakfast mode, this sauce is killer with our family's favorite waffle recipe! And for a PB&J vibe, serve it with these peanut butter waffles!
- On top of ice cream. This easy strawberry sauce is divine served over this paleo vanilla ice cream. SO GOOD!
- Poured over brownies. I can't even pick a favorite brownie recipe from my site. So just search "brownies" in the search bar and choose the recipe that looks best to you!
- Other ideas: angel food cake, cupcakes, toss it in a smoothie or milkshake, the possibilities are endless!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can. But here are two ways I need to caution you if you make this choice.
Thaw the berries first. In order to get a super smooth sauce, please be sure to thaw the strawberries before proceeding with the recipe. Berries shrink as they thaw as well, so keep that in mind.
Drain excess water but reserve some. the thawing process will result in excess water. Be sure to drain it off before proceeding with the recipe. If you'd like, reserve ¼ cup to use in the recipe.
Other than that, you should be able to proceed with the recipe as written! I do recommend fresh berries for the absolute best taste!
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Strawberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 pints fresh strawberries (about 5 cups)
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 TBS instant tapioca
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Put 1 ½ pints (about 4 ½ cups) strawberries and water into the container of your Vitamix blender.
- Start on low speed, then increase to high and blend on high speed for 2 minutes until mixture is warm.
- Add honey tapioca and salt and blend for 2 more minutes until mixture is smooth
- Add vanilla and chopped berries and pulse to combine.
- Serve warm on ice cream, cake, pancakes, waffles, etc. Or chill and serve cold!
Notes
Store/freeze
I recommend storing this strawberry sauce recipe in two ways...- In a glass container in the refrigerator. If you plan to use it all within a few days, I recommend storing it in an airtight container in the fridge! You can either serve it cold or reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop to serve it warm!
- Freeze in ice cube trays. I used the same method I do for freezing homemade baby food to store the leftovers of this strawberry sauce recipe. To store frozen, simply pour the leftover strawberry sauce into silicone ice cube trays and freeze. Once frozen, remove the cubes from the trays and store in an airtight container in the freezer. I love to use frozen strawberry sauce in smoothies!
Ingredient substitutions
- Strawberries. Any berry works perfectly well in this recipe. You many need to adjust the amount of water depending on the water content of the berries you choose!
- Water. For a creamier sauce substitute coconut cream or milk, whole milk, whipping cream, half and half, etc. etc.
- Honey. Any liquid sweetener of your choosing works beautifully in this strawberry sauce recipe. I recommend using maple syrup for a vegan version!
- Vanilla Extract. If you want to get extra fancy, use vanilla beans or vanilla bean paste in place of the vanilla extract.
- Instant tapioca. I have discussed this ingredient before, and I see it as an absolute pantry staple for all things fruity. If you do not have it, tapioca starch or cornstarch can be used in place of instant tapioca, but the amount will likely vary.
Nutrition
More delicious strawberry recipes:
- This strawberry whipped cream is another delicious topping for many desserts, like this flourless chocolate cake!
- I can't resist a slice of this strawberry pie!
- This healthy berry crisp is loaded with strawberries and is SO yummy!
- We make this strawberry banana smoothie ALL the time!
- I'm always in the mood for a glass of this healthy strawberry lemonade!
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Lisa
Or drink with a straw❤️❤️❤️ This stuff is amazing.
Brittany Audra @ Audra's Appetite
Love how this is made with FRUIT and not just sugar as a main ingredient!! I can't wait to try this over baked oatmeal...or pancakes. YUM! 🙂 Love how you can freeze it in smaller portions in ice cube trays too; so handy!
Laura
YES! Strawberries are sweet enough on their own!
Emily Swanson
There is nothing quite so yummy as fresh homemade strawberry jam or strawberry sauce. I can definitely understand Naomi's love for strawberries.
Laura
Agreed Emily!