It’s strawberry season! Aside from plenty of sun and warm weather, fresh sweet fruits is just one of the reason why I love summer. Seeing those fruits in the market made me so excited to head to my kitchen and start baking. But you see, there are several ways to use fresh fruits, fantastic for baking, for cooking and no bake desserts too, or for making jams and compote. 

I love to drizzle chocolate ganache in most of my pastries, but when there an abundance of fresh fruits like berries, I wouldn’t pass the opportunity of making fruit compote and jams for use in my pastry. 

 Difference Between Jam and Compote/Sauce

Consistency: Looking a far, They look almost 100% the same, but if you look  closely you will notice that there’s a difference in terms of consistency. Jams have a thick, heavy and dense texture, while compote have a lighter consistency almost runny. It falls in your spoon when you scoop it out, it’s a sauce more than a spread like a jam. 

Process: the process of making them at the same, at least in how I make them. Same ingredients same steps, the difference is in the lengthy of time you cook the strawberry. Jam takes few minutes longer to cook, you want the juice to be as reduced as possible to end up with a thick jam. Compote takes less time, about 10 – 15 minutes just enough that the strawberry are soft and the sugar is dissolved. I like mine to have visible strawberry chunks so I don’t reduce it at much. I like to see huge chucks when a drizzle it on top of my pastries. But that’s totally up to you, you can cook it to the consistency that you like, just don’t go over board and you will end up with a jam instead of a compote or a sauce. 

Usage: Jam is great for spread on toast, biscuits or scones because of their thick consistency. Compote are great to use as sauce for cakes, pies, cobblers or even as sauce for sundae. 

One Pan Strawberry Sauce 

Making strawberry compote or strawberry sauce is a very easy thing to do. Everything is cool in one pan and simmered until the sugar dissolves and the strawberry starts to soften. In as short as 15 minutes (for 1-2 lbs strawberry) you can have a homemade Strawberry sauce customized to the way that you like it. 

I’m very excited with this Strawberry sauce so expect to see if popping up every now and then in some of my summer and everyday dessert. Let me show you how I made it, Let’s get started! 

 Ingredients:

• 1 lb (450g) Fresh Strawberry – cut into quarters
• 1/4 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt ( I used fine salt)
• 1/2 tbsp lemon juice (optional)
• 1/2 tsp cornstarch (optional) – to thicken the sauce

Instructions:

1. Wash and cut strawberry into quarters and transfer in a pan. Add sugar, salt, cornstarch (if using) and lemon juice (if using).
2. Cook over medium heat for about 10 -15 minutes until the sugar dissolves, the strawberry becomes soft and the juice of the strawberry starts to come out.  Stop as soon as you get the consistency that you prefer. The ideal consistency should not be thick like a jam, it should be runny. When you scoop a spoonful it should easily run down from the spoon without sticking. The consistency is greatly affected on how ripe and how much juice comes out from the strawberries. It could be more or less 15 minutes, but adjust as needed. If you want a thicker consistency, cook the sauce longer.
3. Storage: Set aside and let it cool. Store in an airtight container or jar and refrigerate. It could last about 7 – 10 days in the refrigerator.
4. For Use as Pie Filling: Cook fro another 5 minutes (more or less) or until the sauce is reduced to thick consistency that is perfect for pie filling. The additional length of time could vary depending on how ripe the Strawberry you are using. Chill in refrigerator (overnight recommended) to thicken and set.

Sauce can be used for pancake, cheesecake, biscuit, sundae/ice cream and MORE!

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