So last night I posted my Old School Cheesecake Pie at 9:00 during the middle of the Superbowl. Honestly, I hit publish instead of save! In my defense, the half time show was over and my attention span was stretched to the limit. Anyway, here’s the sweet little recipe for the Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce that I served with that cheesecake!
Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce
I’m getting this post out on the late side, too. But I have another excuse! I’m a new Grandma today! Mackenzie Catherine. The Catherine is after my Mom; that made me tear up even more. She’s a little just beautiful and a little chunk, 8.7 pounds and 20.5 inches and absolutely adorable! I’m sure I’ll have some more appropriate photos to share soon; the ones I have are a little personal and just won’t quite do for her debut here!
About Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce:
But back to the berry sauce. I do love any fruit sauce; they’re so simple and fast and of course, fresh and they make anything seem super special. And when I say fast they really are like a five to 10-minute thing to whip up.
This sauce is gorgeous, silky and has just a bit of body. I love blackberries and they really shine here, so soft and juicy…I cooked this just enough so the berries remained intact. There is no doubt blackberries can be pretty pricey (see below on how to pick them up at a low) so it seems to me that they should be highlighted in all they’re glory. And as far as highlighting, there’s just a little lemon which accents blackberries (and so many berries) beautifully. It’s tart, it’s sweet and you’ll just about want to eat it off a spoon.
As much as I love that cheesecake, the Blackberry Sauce pretty much just takes it over the top. And while Blackberry Sauce is fabulous with Cheesecake, you can use this sauce over just about anything you’d like. Think about it over (or in for a ripple) ice-cream, with yogurt, or maybe as a topping instead of blueberries with my Mascarpone Filled Cream Puffs (Valentine’s Day is coming up & they’re so “fancy”) and of course this is marvelous over pancakes or waffles.
Old School Cheesecake Pie
Making Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce:
You’ll start off with this sauce with just berries, a little lemon zest and sugar and a touch of water just to get things moving. Heat it slowly, which lets the sugar melt as the berries cook and be very gentle with them. It’ just fine to crush a few but if you want big, gorgeous berries in your sauce, know that they’re delicate and get more delicate as they heat.
As the berries heat, everything liquefies and you’re gonna help the sauce along with a cornstarch slurry. Once the berries are almost to where you want them, add a teaspoon and a half of cornstarch to the bottom of a small cup. Mix together a tablespoon of lemon juice and two tablespoons of water and add, little by little to the cornstarch, stirring as you add. Dump that mixture into the simmering berries and stir and the sauce will immediately thicken.
Anytime you’re working with berries, the amount of juice given off can vary. It the sauce isn’t thick enough for you (it will be thicker as it cools) you have two choices: Eith mix another teaspoon of cornstarch mixed with a tablespoon of water and add bit by bit till it’s just right for you or simmer longer. If you simmer longer the blackberries will continue to cook and soften more. If the sauce is too thick, just add water by the tablespoon, off heat.
Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce
Saving on Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce:
There is no doubt blackberries can set you back a bit. I picked up mine right before the Superbowl when there were all kinds of sales. Any holiday is usually a great time to pick up fresh berries, and you might want to take a peek at my post, Winning at the Grocers which has links to pages that highlight each major “food” holiday and what to look for on sale.
Costco and Aldi both have great prices, but if you don’t have access to either, use my strategy of shopping (and splurging) on your berries during any holiday sale. Even if berries are regularly on sale throughout the summer, the stores heavily discount berries during the pre-holiday sales to lure you in the door.
Lemons are harvested and picked all year round but right now, late winter to early spring is the primary harvest. You might notice more lemons on sale and you might notice bags of lemons at the store. Take a peek at those bags and make sure they’re the best deal; the quality can vary. But that makes this the best time of year to indulge in anything lemon! This recipe just uses a little lemon zest and juice; there’s a little zest in that cheesecake, so it can all be zested at once if you’re making that, or it can all be zested and the zest tossed in a small Ziploc in the freezer.
The lemon can be “forked” and the juice squeezed out, then wrapped to use soon. Just like it sounds, stick a fork in it and squeeze the juice out of the tiny holes.
Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce
Easy Fresh Blackberry Sauce
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
- Category: Desserts
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 cups (1 pint) blackberries
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1½ teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice mixed with 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
Add blackberries, the 1 tablespoon of water, sugar and zest to a small pan. Heat over low for three to four minutes, gently stirring until the blackberries have given off juices, the sugar is melted and mixture simmers. When blackberries have reached your desired stage (they can be cooked until just soft or cooked longer if you wish them to break apart) add the cornstarch slurry. Mix; the sauce should start to thicken immediately. Remove from heat. The sauce will be thicker once cooled.
Mix the slurry:
Mix together lemon juice and water. In a small cup, add the cornstarch. Slowly while stirring, add in the lemon juice water mixture into the cornstarch. If this mixture sits, the cornstarch will thicken on the bottom of the cup. Just stir together before using.
Keywords: Blackberries, Breakfast or Brunch Dish, Dessert Sauces, Desserts, Fruit Desserts, Lemon
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I’ll be sharing at Fiesta Friday #313. I’ll also be sharing at the Weekend Potluck #414 at South Your Mouth & What’s For Dinner Sunday at the Lazy Gastronome. Be sure to stop by if you’d like to catch up on your favorite bloggers in one place every week.
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