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How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!}

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May 13, 2021 by Kristi Stone 27 Comments

strawberry sauce - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead
various photos of strawberries and beverages - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead
strawberry sauce - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead
strawberry sauce - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead
various strawberry sauce desserts - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead

It seems such a shame to throw away some of the kitchen scraps we generate. If you are a gardener, chances are that you throw yours into the compost pile, or if you have chickens, to them. But have you ever thought of eating some of them? This recipe will teach you how to make strawberry sauce out of the scraps you may have leftover from canning or dehydrating!

fresh strawberries - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead
Photo credit: Canva.com

There is some controversy about whether or not strawberry stems are edible. According to this article on SpoonUniversity.com, they are!

There are some that would even go as far to say that they are actually healthy helpers of arthritis pain. You can decide based on your own research whether you want to use tops or whole fruit for this strawberry syrup recipe.

Whatever you decide, choosing organic strawberries (or tops) for this strawberry syrup is prudent due to the pesticide load in non-organic.

How to Make Strawberry Sauce

Homemade Strawberry Sauce Recipe

This can be made with fresh strawberries, but for some reason when I make it from our strawberry tops, it tastes all the sweeter. See if you feel the same way as I do!

Print Recipe

INGREDIENTS  

  • 2 quarts of strawberry tops from organic strawberries or 1 quart organic strawberries
  • 1/2-1 cup sugar granulated
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice or juice from half a lemon

INSTRUCTIONS 

  • In a bowl combine strawberry tops, sugar and lemon juice.
  • Stir around to incorporate the sugar and lemon juice evenly with the strawberries.
  • Cover and allow to macerate in the refrigerator until the next morning.
  • Add all of the contents in the bowl to your blender.
  • Blend everything up, then put it all through a metal sieve to strain.
  • Use a silicone spatula to scrape the inside of the sieve, allowing the juice to run through the small holes. (You may need to scrap the outside of the sieve to get all of the strawberry goodness into your bowl.)
  • Once all of the juice has drained and all you have left is a lump of ground stems and pulp, give it to the chickens (remember that there is likely still some sugar left, so if your chickens have had a sugary treat already, just add the waste to your compost pile).

NOTES

This should make about 2-3 cups of syrup. Store your homemade strawberry syrup for up to two weeks in the fridge or for longer in the freezer. Use to flavor your homemade lemonade, homebrewed kombucha, over pancakes, in your iced tea or smoothies, on top of desserts, or anywhere else you would use strawberry syrup to give them all a fantastic flavor.

Want more low waste tips?

banana peel fertilizer (banana peels)
perfect homemade croutons (stale bread)
using all of the harvest in creative ways (carrots, mint, other kitchen scraps)

You’ll love being able to get more use out of the things that would have otherwise been thrown away, and likely, it will jog your thinking on how to do it with more fruits and veggies.

This homemade strawberry syrup gives strawberry tops one more stop along the way before compost pile. Making this recipe will make you feel like a domestic farm goddess!

PIN FOR LATER

strawberry sauce - How to Make Strawberry Sauce {Using the Tops!} - Stone Family Farmstead

Filed Under: RECIPES, SEASONALTagged With: PRESERVING FOOD, SUMMER

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. LSM says

    August 8, 2015 at 10:40 am

    Wonderful! Thanks so much!

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 8, 2015 at 8:18 pm

      You are so welcome, LSM! Glad you can use the recipe!

      Reply
  2. Carole West @ Garden Up Green says

    August 8, 2015 at 11:14 am

    Thanks for sharing this I was hoping you would.
    I’m a strawberry and raspberry nut; this is going to be fantastic over waffles.

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 8, 2015 at 8:19 pm

      You are welcome, Carole! It’s such an easy recipe and tastes great when added to pretty much anything that tastes good with a strawberry compliment. Enjoy!

      Reply
  3. Kelsey Ferguson says

    August 10, 2015 at 1:52 pm

    What a great use for the strawberry tops! I always feel bad for throwing them out. Thanks for this awesome recipe. 🙂

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 10, 2015 at 2:05 pm

      I know that feeling! I’m glad you could use the recipe, Kelsey–thanks for visiting!

      Reply
  4. Marla says

    August 12, 2015 at 7:07 am

    This is a great way to use every part of your food. Never thought of using the strawberries tops this way. thanks for sharing. Visiting from Wildcrafting Wednesdays.

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 15, 2015 at 7:41 am

      Thanks Marla! This is truly the best strawberry syrup I’ve tasted!

      Reply
  5. Jennifer says

    August 15, 2015 at 9:55 pm

    What a great idea and a great way to minimize waste. Thanks for sharing at the Weekend Blog Hop (myflagstaffhome.com).

    Jennifer

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 16, 2015 at 8:28 am

      I agree, Jennifer. It’s one of the things that makes me feel so victorious in the kitchen! 😀

      Reply
  6. Kathy says

    August 16, 2015 at 2:20 pm

    What a great resourceful recipe. Thanks for sharing at the Recipe Swap.

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 16, 2015 at 6:34 pm

      My pleasure, Kathy, thank you for the opportunity!

      Reply
  7. Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures says

    August 17, 2015 at 5:57 pm

    Oh, wow! How very clever! I’d like to feature this tomorrow at Tuesdays with a Twist! -Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 18, 2015 at 6:21 am

      Thanks Marci, I’ll stop by! 😀

      Reply
  8. Shelle @ PreparednessMama says

    August 19, 2015 at 1:13 pm

    Once again you’ve got me thinking about using leftovers in a new way! My mind is spinning, this would work on peaches, pears or apples. I guess I better get cooking…Thanks for stopping by Front Porch Friday, we’re featuring your post this week. – Shelle

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 19, 2015 at 8:09 pm

      There are just SO many things we can do with our scraps, Shelle! A friend just told me about “peach pit jelly” which is made from, you guessed it–peach pits (probably the non-freestone variety that some of the fruit clings to). I LOVE finding ways to stretch food and make more from it, it’s a challenge for me. Apples scraps can be used to make apple cider vinegar, and I’ll bet you can probably squeeze some pear juice from your pear scraps as well, maybe to make a jelly or something like that! So many options! Thank you so much for featuring my post, I’m so honored. 🙂

      Reply
      • Della says

        August 27, 2017 at 5:35 am

        I compost 90 o/o. Reading your stuff makes it feel like a sin. I am going to restructure some things to get that feeling off me. Thanks for sharing. You are a new hate way for me THANKS.

        Reply
        • Kristi Stone says

          March 20, 2018 at 8:42 am

          Oh my, don’t feel that way! Not a sin at all to compost your stuff! This is just another way to use it. 🙂

          Reply
  9. Sandra says

    August 20, 2015 at 7:02 am

    Thanks for sharing at Our Simple Homestead Hop!
    This was my featured post this week 🙂

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      August 20, 2015 at 7:11 am

      Thanks so much, Sandra! 🙂

      Reply
  10. JES says

    November 17, 2015 at 1:42 pm

    This is excellent Kristi! My seventh sense (the frugal sense) was telling me there had to be something to do with the precious strawberry tops. Have you ever tried it with honey I wonder?

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      November 17, 2015 at 7:01 pm

      I would think that would work fine, JES, but I’ve never tried it. I’ll bet it would be fantastic!

      Reply
  11. Karen says

    June 4, 2017 at 10:03 am

    Can this be canned?

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      March 20, 2018 at 8:44 am

      I would assume that you could, but you would need to check with someone who understands the science of canning to know for sure. I usually freeze this until I’m ready to use it.

      Reply
  12. Jamie says

    May 17, 2021 at 5:43 pm

    When you say strawberry tops, are you talking about the green leaves? I’ve tried eating the leaves before but didn’t much like them. Am I understanding that you make a syrup from the green leaves on top? Or do you core the berries and use the cores?

    Reply
    • Kristi Stone says

      June 22, 2021 at 8:32 am

      Hi Jamie! When I say “tops” I mean the top part that you cut off…so the green leaves are present, but there’s also some strawberry on there as well. 🙂 If you are one that only removes the leaves, you can still just make this sauce from whole strawberries! 🙂

      Reply
  13. Ashley says

    July 10, 2021 at 6:33 am

    Love the idea! Thanks! Another thing I have done with them is just dehydrate the strawberry tops and add them into my teas when I make my own blends. I’ve mixed with my mint growing in the garden and maybe some lemon balm ect. It adds a subtle sweet flavor to the tea. Another thing I have tried is keeping all my scraps in a bag in my freezer (strawberry tops, apple and peach peelings, grapes that were losing their crispness but not bad yet ect) when the bag is full I took it out and put it in a saucepan, cooked until the fruit juices were released then strained and added sugar and pectin. Made a surprise mixed fruit jelly. A lot of guesswork involved with it as it is never the same but it turned out delicious. I added some apple or pumpkin spice mix once and it was extra delicious! Best part is that it is practically free jelly!

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Kristi!

A little about me….For the past 6 years, we have lived on a scant acre in Southern California. I am the wife of the greatest guy ever….also a veteran ex-homeschooling mom of 3, grandma of 1, and fur mom of many!

Besides writing, my hobbies are gardening, herbs, crafting, scratch cooking, food preservation, goat breeding, and teaching all of these things here, to you, on Stone Family Farmstead’s website.


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