Juicy blueberries bring their natural sweetness to this quick and easy blueberry sauce topping. This makes for a delicious finishing touch on so many different desserts like cheesecake and ice cream, and turns simple breakfast foods like whole wheat pancakes, oatmeal, and yogurt into something special. You need just 6 ingredients (including water!), and you can use either fresh or frozen blueberries.
One reader, Sue, commented: “The perfect sauce for your easy cheesecake pie. I made both for Easter and things got really quiet when everyone started eating it. I knew that was a good sign! I loved that it was pourable, but not runny. The whole berries are visually appealing and a great contrast to the creamy pie. Not too sweet, which allows the blueberries to shine. Yum! โ โ โ โ โ “
Don’t you just love a versatile berry sauce topping, that’s as welcome on the breakfast table as it is on a dessert? A topping always takes desserts to the next level, both in terms of flavor and in presentation for serving. I have raspberry dessert sauce and strawberry sauce topping… so clearly it’s about time we invite blueberries to the party.
This recipe is very similar to the topping I use on blueberry cream cheese pie, but, well, saucier. For that pie topping, you want a thicker, jammier topping that sets up enough to stay together when you slice into the pie.
For this blueberry sauce topping, you want to be able to spoon or pour it on top of a slice of lemon cheesecake, or a dish of ice cream (maybe even blueberry crumble ice cream!). It also tastes phenomenal on pancakes & waffles, stirred into yogurt, and spooned over cream cheese French toast casserole. To sum up: blueberry sauce is limitless.
Why You’ll Love This Easy Blueberry Topping
- Make it with either fresh or frozen blueberries
- Comes together on the stove in less than 10 minutes
- Naturally sweet from the berriesโadd just 2 Tablespoons of sugar
- So versatileโdelicious on so many desserts and even breakfast foods
- Serve warm, cold, or room temperatureโyour choice!
- Freezes well, so great make-ahead recipe
Have you ever made my blueberry swirl cheesecake? Today’s topping is a bit saucier than what you use for that cheesecake. Nearly identical taste, though.
Grab These 6 Ingredients:
- Water: I use more water in this sauce than in similar recipes on my website because blueberries don’t really break down as much as, say, raspberries. We want this to be a pourable/spoonable consistency right off the heat.
- Cornstarch: This ingredient slightly thickens the sauce. You don’t need much, but you must combine it with a little liquid before adding to the berries, otherwise you’ll have lumps of powdery cornstarch in your finished sauce. Cornstarch is typically mixed with water to make a “slurry” before using in sauces; see strawberry sauce as an example.
- Lemon Juice: The sauce needs *something* to balance the berry and sugar, and lemon juice provides that hint of brightness. Don’t leave it out, or the flavor will fall flat.
- Fresh or Frozen Blueberries: Blueberries are so convenientโno peeling, pitting, or chopping required! (That’s why blueberry pie is my #1 choice for a summer pie.) When they’re not in season, feel free to use frozen blueberries. If using frozen, you don’t need to stir/mash the mixture as much because the blueberries break down easier.
- Sugar: Because blueberries are so naturally sweet, you only need a little sugar to sweeten this sauceโjust 2 Tablespoons.
- Vanilla Extract: Stir in a small splash of vanilla once the sauce comes off the heat. Vanilla gives the sauce dessert vibes. ๐
How to Make It
You’ll cook the mixture down on the stove. Warm the blueberries and sugar together first, and make sure you’re mashing some of the blueberries with your spoon or silicone spatula as it heats. This is especially important if using fresh blueberries. With frozen berries, you won’t need to break them down quite as much because the thawing liquid is there to help.
You are in control of the thickness and consistency of this blueberry sauce toppingโit all comes down to how many blueberries you mash while the mixture cooks.
After 3 minutes, stir in the cornstarch “slurry” made from cornstarch, water, and lemon juice. Let that cook and thicken for a few minutes before removing from heat. Then stir in the vanilla.
You’re done!
The mixture thickens as it cools. Off heat, it’s warm and drippy. After cooling and refrigerating, it thickens into a thin preserves-like consistency. If desired, you can reheat the blueberry sauce topping to thin it out.
I love it warm on ice cream:
Can This Be a Filling for a Layer Cake?
Not as written, no. I haven’t successfully tested a thicker cake filling version of this yet; however, you could try reducing the water and increasing the cornstarch a bit. Or try my raspberry cake filling instead.
It could work as a cupcake filling, though! Make sure it’s completely cooled before filling.
Uses for Blueberry Sauce Topping
On its own, blueberry sauce is a naturally gluten free dessert recipe. You can also serve it with any of the following treats (some of which are also GF!):
- Your favorite vanilla ice cream, or this no-churn blueberry crumble ice cream
- Topping on pavlova and no-bake cheesecake jars
- Filling for homemade crepes
- Use as the jam in these breakfast Danish pastries or the filling in these berry turnovers
- Pancakes & waffles, such as these buttermilk waffles and whole wheat pancakesโand a Dutch baby pancake, too
- Lemon cheesecake, plain cheesecake, lemon blueberry cheesecake bars, or cheesecake pie
- Stir into oatmeal or yogurt
- Serve with cream cheese French toast casserole or blueberry French toast casserole
- Topping on lemon pudding cakes
- Spooned on slices of white cake, pistachio cake, or cream cheese pound cake
- Swap out the fresh fruit topping on fruit pizza and spoon this over the cream cheese frosting instead
- Topping on goat cheese crostini
- Use it instead of strawberry compote on brown butter pound cake
Can I bake this in desserts? Yes, you can bake this in desserts. For example, you can swap the raspberry swirl in these white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars with this blueberry sauce (no need to strain, just swirl the chunky sauce into the cheesecake filling). You could also skip the apples in this apple crumb cake and add a layer of blueberry sauce under the crumb topping; and swap in blueberry sauce for the jam in these raspberry streusel bars and this raspberry twist bread.
And here is even more inspiration for dessert recipes that use blueberries.
Print
Blueberry Sauce Topping
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 minutes
- Total Time: 16 minutes
- Yield: about 1 and 1/4 cups
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This blueberry sauce topping comes together quickly and easily on the stove, and can be enjoyed warm or cold on many desserts and breakfast foods. You can use fresh or frozen blueberries.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup (80ml) warm water
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 cups (1 pint; 280g) fresh or frozen blueberries (if using frozen, do not thaw)
- 2 Tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Whisk the cornstarch, water, and lemon juice together until all the cornstarch has dissolved. (I just use a fork to mixโvery easy.) Set aside.
- Warm the blueberries and sugar together in a small saucepan over medium heat. With a wooden spoon or sturdy silicone spatula, stir continuously for 3 minutes, gently smashing the berries against the sides of the pan to help them release some juices. (If you used frozen blueberries, you won’t need to smash them as much because they will naturally break down as they thaw over heat.) After 3 minutes, add the cornstarch mixture and continue to stir for another 2โ3 minutes, smashing more berries if needed. The mixture will start to thicken.
- Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Allow to cool. The mixture is liquid and drippy, but thickens considerably as it cools.
- You can serve the sauce warm before it cools completely if desired, or store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Blueberry topping will be thick after refrigeration, so microwave for 15 seconds or warm on the stove to thin out, if desired.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: After the blueberry sauce cools completely, freeze in a freezer-friendly container for up to 3โ6 months. Thaw on the counter or in the refrigerator. Warm up in the microwave or on the stove, if desired.
- Special Toolsย (affiliate links): Fork or Whisk | Small Sauce Pan | Wooden Spoon or Silicone Spatula
- Other berries: I recommend my raspberry sauce and strawberry sauce recipes instead.
- Lemon: Lemon brightens the flavor. You need 1 Tablespoon (15ml) of fresh lemon juice.
- Chunks: The consistency is up to you. For fewer blueberry chunks, smash the berries a little more as the sauce cooks. For no blueberry chunks, puree the finished sauce in a blender until you reach your desired consistency.
Reader Comments and Reviews
It paired wonderfully with SBAโs โNo bake Cheesecakeโ. I reduced the recipe to fit for one cup of blueberries. It was so delicious, I almost ate it all!
How much sauce does this recipe make?
About 1 and 1/4 cups.
This is my favorite topping for cheesecake. I always make cheesecake according to your recipe (perfect each time) and then I pour this sauce over the entire thing. It thickens so nicely on top and looks amazing.
Can I mix this with lemon curd for a filling in the lemon blueberry cake or will it not be stable enough? I will pipe a frosting border around
Hi Deirdre! We’ve never tested mixing this with lemon curd so we’re unsure of the consistency. We would steer you towards our raspberry cake filling recipe instead, swapping blueberries for raspberries. Let us know if you try!
This was great on lemon pancakes. I had some in the freezer leftover from weeks ago. Thawed and warmed in the microwave–so delicious!
Very good consistency following the directions exactly. I have a bumper crop of blueberries that we grow and thought would be nice to treat the family to cheesecake topped with this. I didn’t use fresh lemon because I didn’t have on hand but still came out delicious. Would recommend for a quick and easy dessert addition that friends and family will love over angel cake, cheesecake, ice cream etc.
Hi, Sally. Love almost anything you create! But shouldnโt you tell people that anything with cornstarch in it requires a minute at boil?
Hi Fran, thank you so much! The blueberry sauce mixture boils for 2 to 3 minutes after you add the cornstarch. I’m sorry if that is unclear in the recipe!
Helloโฆfor anyone wishing to skip cornstarch in sauces or pectin when making jams, just simmer the liquids for about 10 minutes total once they come to an almost boil. My deceased immigrant mom taught me and weโve never used eitherโฆthough weโve used flour/water slurry for some gravies. Oh, and Iโve been loving everything Iโve madeโฆthe soft & chewy oatmeal raisin cookies are absolutely divine โฆ have become a weekly staple in our home.
Delicious topping for cheesecake and super easy to make. Used leftover sauce on some homemade biscuits the following morning – just as tasty!
I just made this recipe yesterday and while the flavor was very good…it did not thicken up at all, even after refrigeration. Full disclosure, I swapped out the sugar for 1 tablespoon and one teaspoon of local honey. That was not the problem (and again, tasted very good). After some research online, I found that acid can hinder cornstarch from doing it’s job. Also, the water should be cold. So…the next time I make it…I will mix 1 1/2 teaspoons of cornstarch with the same amount of cold water. I am going to add the remaining water, frozen wild blueberries, honey, and lemon juice to a saucepan and bring to a simmer (my mixture also wasn’t hot enough). Then when that comes to a simmer I will add the cornstarch slurry and when that is done…add the vanilla off-heat. Hopefully that will work. Again..it was delicious (had it with my morning yogurt)…just needs to be thicker.
Just a follow up on my change. I just made it and it turned out so much thicker. The first time I made it, it was more like blueberry water. This time…it is an actual sauce..and it hasn’t even finished cooling yet!.
Thanks for the recipe. It’s a great addition to my yogurt!
Perfect sauce for cheesecake! Easy to make and appreciated that it doesn’t have a ton of added sugar like a lot of other recipes I see. Made biscuits the next day and it was a delicious topping for those too. Thank you!
Can this recipe be canned to use for gifts?
Hi Louise, We havenโt tested canning this blueberry sauce, but let us know if you do!
This was really good. Iโm saving to make again and again. The only thing I added was a bit of my new lemon extract because I couldnโt resist. Took this to work along with the Cream Cheese Pound Cake (by Sally also) and got great reviews.
I put this over your lemon cheesecake. The combination is amazing
This, as is all your recipes, is superb. I’m canning it for so many uses and wonder if I can use it in place of the filling in your blueberry pie bars. Possibly add more sugar and vanilla? How much filling (volume) is used in the Blueberry Pie Bars?
Thank you for all your clear instructions, variety of options and perfected recipes.
Hi Patty, we’re so glad you enjoy it! We don’t recommend using this sauce as filling for our blueberry pie barsโit’s a bit too liquidy. Best to stick with that filling instead.
Can I use honey instead of sugar
Hi Juanita, I don’t recommend it. You don’t want to use liquid sweetener/sugar here.
Can this recipe and the other berry sauces be canned in a water bath canner?
Hi Christina, We havenโt tested canning this blueberry sauce, but let us know if you do!
I added about 2 tsps.
I added about two teaspoons of blueberry balsamic vinegar. Really kicked up the blueberry flavor
Can I try it with cherries?
Hi Moira, We havenโt tested this before, but since cherries release a different amount of liquid than blueberries, it would likely take a little bit of tweaking to get the right consistency. Let us know if you decide to do any experimenting!
I thought too much starch and too much sugar. When made again I used 2t. sugar and wild blueberries. I guess if the domestic blueberries aren’t sweet, why add a lot of sugar to unripened fruit?
Can you use tapioca instead of cornstarch?
Hi C, we haven’t tested this recipe with any thickener besides cornstarch, but let us know if you do decide to try with tapioca.
Can you can the Blueberry Sauce Topping?
Hi Meeghan, we haven’t tried canning this recipe, but let us know if you do try it.
Another winner! Best blueberry sauce ever!!
This was super easy to make, I love it! How would I sweeten it and thicken it a little? Thank you.
A really tasty sauce. I doubled the recipe using 2 c of blueberries and 2 c of blackberries. Oh so good on pancakes and lemon pound cake!
You are my go to site for just about any recipe. Everything comes out great when I use your recipes!!!!
I’d made a doubt batch right off love it wonderful on pancakes tosst etc