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Warm berry sauce poured over cold ice cream is one of my favorite desserts. I make this sauce year-round and every time I serve it, it gets raves.
Berry Sauce from Frozen Berries
This fruit sauce might be the simplest recipe I keep in my dessert recipe notebook. I scribbled it out on a scrap of paper almost 25 years ago while I was visiting a friend.
We were dishing up bowls of ice cream and her husband told us to wait a minute. He combined some frozen fruit and a bit of sugar in a saucepan, simmered a few minutes, and then transformed that basic bowl of ice cream into something much more elegant.
I was speechless (yes, imagine that) over the difference the warm fruit sauce made over that dish of ice cream. Sweet berry flavor turned the easy dessert into a cold creamy bowl of heaven.
I’ve never served this simple berry sauce to guests without rave reviews. There is something heavenly about the way the warm fruits melt down into the cold ice cream or spreads over a slice of creamy cheesecake. You’re going to love this!
I made the ice çream and berry sauce. It was to die for.!!! I finally found my comfort food. I had straight cherries 🍒🍒instead of mixed berries for the sauce🥘🧁. AWESOME 🍨
Berry Sauce for Ice Cream
My whole family gets excited when I pull berries out of the freezer along with a tub of ice cream. Not only is the flavor delicious, but the contrast of warm and cold temperatures is also divine.
I’m all about simple and hassle-free ways to turn basic treats into something that feels a bit more special and this mixed berry sauce does just that.
Perfect Berry Sauce
With so many possible combinations of berries and fruits to use in this sauce, I never get bored with it either.
Lest you think this sauce is only good as an ice cream topping, I also poured this over the Vanilla Bean Cheesecake I made last week. From topping cheesecakes to Greek yogurt to mousse cups or pudding, this berry sauce makes everything better.
This really is the perfect 5-minute treat.
I’ve made this simple fruit sauce topping countless times over the years, using whichever fruits I happened to have in the freezer at the time. Cherries, strawberries, and blueberries are all perfect in this topping.
I’ve also used raspberries for a slightly tarter variation on the original berry sauce. A mix of different berries is my favorite combination, the different fruit flavors always combine so well together.
Whatever berries or cherries you happen to have stored away in your freezer are sure to work well in this sauce! It’s so versatile and makes even the simplest desserts something special.
Berry Sauce Recipe
Making this berry sauce is so easy it hardly requires a recipe at all. I’ve played with different proportions of sugar and berries and still think the original is just perfect.
This sauce is as easy as combining berries and sugar in a pan. Put frozen berries and a big scoop of granulated sugar in a sauce pan over low heat. Stir the berries occasionally until they soften and everything starts to meld together.
Turn the heat up to medium once the berries are completely thawed and soft. Use a potato masher to mash the berries and stir constantly while the berries simmer, for about 2 minutes.
If you don’t have a potato masher, a sturdy fork or the back of a spoon will work too. Mash the berries until there are no big chunks of berries left.
Serve the sauce warm, poured right on top of Old Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream or Strawberry Vanilla Ice Cream. It also makes a great ice cream sundae topping along with crushed nuts and homemade Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream.
Homemade sauces for ice cream are worlds better than anything you can buy from the store, and they come together in just a few minutes. You can even make the berry sauce ahead of time and store it in the fridge so it’s ready to go anytime you need it. This sauce will keep well in the fridge for up to a couple of weeks.
Fruit Topping for Cheesecake
Berry sauce is also my secret to turning a plain cheesecake into an elegant treat. Turn your vanilla cheesecake into a blueberry, strawberry, raspberry, or cherry cheesecake just by pouring this sauce on top.
When using the sauce for cheesecake, let it cool to room temperature first. The combination of flavors is phenomenal!
There are no limits to the number of ways you can use this sweet and simple berry sauce. Add some excitement to a Yogurt Parfait, drizzle over Whole Wheat Pancakes or mix it into a cup of Vanilla Pudding.
Once you have this sauce tucked into the fridge, I highly recommend making a batch of Mixed Berry Ice Cream. I’m so very glad I scribbled down this recipe all those years ago!
Looking for more berry ice cream recipes? Creamy and rich with an abundance of chocolate chunks that melt in your mouth, Black Raspberry Ice Cream is as iconic a flavor in Ohio as the chocolate and peanut butter “Buckeye” flavors that are also popular in every ice cream shop here.
Creamy, sweet, and just a bit tart, let’s give the summer a last hurrah of bright refreshing flavors with this Lime Ice Cream.
Berry Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups frozen berries (I typically use a mixture of cherries, strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.)
- ⅓ cup sugar
Instructions
- Place the frozen fruit and the sugar in a small saucepan. Set the heat to low, stirring occasionally, until the berries have softened. This should take between 5-10 minutes.
- Once the berries are mostly thawed, increase the heat to medium. Mash them with a potato masher and stir constantly while the liquid simmers for about 2 minutes.
- Pour the warm mixture over vanilla ice cream or let cool and then serve with the dessert of your choice. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
{originally published 2/20/13 – recipe notes and photos updated 6/14/23}
I’m wondering about taking advantage of the abundantly available berries in the summer and canning this sauce…..?
I’m guessing it would work fine, like a jam or jelly, Pam. I’ve never tried that though.
Made this today and went perfectly thanks for the excellent recipe ❤️
Jess – It is so simple, and delicious on so many things. Thank you for sharing.
I made the ice çream and berry sauce. It was to die for.!!! I finally found my comfort food. I had straight cherries 🍒🍒instead of mixed berries for the sauce🥘🧁. AWESOME 🍨
YAY! Sounds like my reaction the first time I made that heavenly sauce, Denise. I’m happy to hear that you love it too!
So simple and easy to make. I’ve used it for cheesecake and thumbprint cookies. Everyone who’s tried both desserts absolutely love the flavor this berry sauce gives.
I agree, there are so many uses for this sauce.
I can’t wait to make this today !!! I always have a bag of frozen berries on hand for my smoothies! This will be awesome on my vanilla frozen yogurt!! I’ll sub sugar for Splenda to have all the pleasure and zero guilt haha!!!!👍
I’m glad you can adapt the recipe to meet your needs, Audrey. Enjoy the berry sauce!
Delicious and so easy!
Glad to hear that you’re loving the berry sauce, Mary!
I made a half pint jar of this using blueberries, blackberries and red raspberries from my garden. I served over plain Greek yogurt and nuked it to serve warmed over vanilla ice cream. Every single bite was pure heaven.
oooh! I bet that was fantastic, Kerry.
wondering if I can use agave instead of sugar?
Thank you
Rosalee
Hi, Rosalee! I haven’t tried using agave in this recipe before, but it’s worth a try. If you decide to make the berry sauce with agave, let me know how it turns out! Enjoy, and happy cooking.
First time making this sauce. Used frozen blueberries and more of frozen raspberries. Found it a bit tart for my purpose to drizzle on angel food cake. So, I added just less than a teaspoon of raw honey. This smoothed the tartness to subtle.
That sounds lovely, Jan. Happy cooking!
Can I use fresh raspberries, blueberries, strawberries instead of frozen fruit?
Hi, Ann. That should work. I hope you love the berry sauce!
I put this on waffles; it was a perfect way to use the frozen berries we always have in the back of our freezer. I did add a cornstarch solution, and that made it a jam-like consistency, which was so perfect. Thank you for sharing this recipe; it was so easy to make and delicious.
I’m thrilled you’re enjoying the berry sauce, Amelia!
Yummy
I’m so glad you’re enjoying the sauce, Jean!
I used a mixture of frozen strawberries and blueberries. I found 1/3 cup of sugar made this sauce way too sweet. Trying to doctor it up now with lemon juice and lemon zest. Hopefully it is salvageable. Will try to make this again in the future (it’s Christmas Eve and I don’t have anymore berries left) at which time I will gradually add in the sugar…
I’m glad you were able to make it work for your tastes, Carol.
I made this for ice cream at a friend’s home,
and now she asks me to bring some along when I come over. She likes to use it like jelly on peanut butter!
YAY! I’m glad it’s a win for you!
I’m so grateful this simple recipe exists! Bought a baked cheesecake and realised too late we had no topping for it. At the same time I recalled having frozen smoothie berries in the dark recesses of the deepfreeze, and a quick google search led me here. The cheesecake and the family lunch was saved! Thank you so much for sharing it.
YAY! I’m thrilled you love it.