Strawberry Coolie

With the cost of food and the burden of food production on our environment we try hard to avoid food waste. This is a great, versatile recipe to use up excess or over-ripe berries – you could give it a try with other fruit like pineapple or mango but we’re more partial to berries.

Ingredients

• 800g berries of your choice, if using strawberries chop into smaller pieces
• 2cups castor sugar – this can be reduced to suit your taste & may vary depending on the sweetness of the berries you use
• 2-3Tbsp water
• 1Tbsp lemon juice

Give it a whirl!

Take the berries – in this recipe strawberries – and chop them into smaller pieces before placing in a saucepan. Add the castor sugar and water, and allow to cook slowly on a medium heat stirring occasionally. The longer you cook it, the thicker it will become thereby avoiding the need to add cornflour (which may alter the flavour) – it will also thicken as it cools. As it nears the desired consistency, add the lemon juice which will help to preserve it a little. Allow to cool a little before blending – we use a stick blender – and then strain the sauce through a sieve to remove any seeds. Once cooled completely, decant into sterilized bottles and store in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. This sauce is super delicious over vanilla ice cream or as a cheesecake topping. It’s also a very tasty addition to breakfast, added to plain yoghurt or drizzled over flapjacks.