This Blueberry Cardamom sauce is an easy, throw together dessert that uses the best of seasonal fresh blueberries and simple ingredients. You can use frozen blueberries also so that you can enjoy it anytime of the year!

My friend Ana who writes the blog Family Wellness Tips recently wrote a post on Instagram, explaining the term “earthing”, which is the act of walking barefoot. In her post, she describes the many health and sensory benefits of walking barefoot.

Perhaps I’m dating myself but back when I was a child, there was no such term as “earthing”. Most kids in my small suburban Midwest neighborhood ran barefoot on cracked sidewalks, through grass and directly into puddles.  We would wake up early, quickly gobble up our buttered toast and jam with eggs and beg our mothers to see when our friends would be available to play.

We spent most days “house hopping” which involved playing slip -n- slide in each other’s yards, collecting pebbles and building fairy houses with sticks and grass. Sometimes, we would just lie under a leafy tree, read books and dream of all the places we could be instead of our sleepy suburban town.

There were no iPhones, computers or screens other than television and video games. I definitely spent my fair share of time on screens but that didn’t come until much later, when I was a teenager.

At 5 pm, my mother would yell at us to come home for dinner. I would quickly shovel food into my mouth and run outside for more play.   After the sun would set, casting its golden, pink hues, fireflies would buzz around us in their golden light. The air felt warm and fragrant like jasmine. We would run around like maniacs trying to capture as many fireflies as possible into our mason jars. Our parents would drag our tired little bodies home to bathe and prepare us for bed. I was exhausted each night.

These were my dog days of summer. Sometimes, I terribly miss them. To celebrate, I created this blueberry sauce. It’s super easy to make and can be poured over a multitude of food such as ice cream, yogurt, pancakes or waffles.

The sauce is not fussy like jam; rather it comes together in about ten minutes. It’s flavored with cardamom, which is a spice I grew up with and one that my mother used in many sweet and savory dishes.

The sauce can be served with a tray of madeleines, ice cream and my maple granola brittle. It’s a dessert that both kids and adults can enjoy together.  It even tastes great with cheese and crackers.

What are your favorite summer memories? I would love to hear from you in the comments.

Happy August everyone!

Blueberry Cardamom Sauce

Serves 4; Makes a 1/2 pint jar

Free from: sesame. Top 8 free, vegan

Ingredients:

For the blueberry cardamom sauce:

• 1 pint or 1 pound fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup organic cane sugar
• grated zest and juice of 1 lemon ( about 1 tablespoon)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon sweet aged balsamic vinegar

Combine all the above ingredients except balsamic vinegar into a medium heavy bottom pot.  Bring to a rolling boil, decrease heat to medium low and simmer for 8-10 minutes until blueberries pop but are still saucy.

Take off heat. Stir in balsamic vinegar.  Cool and store in a clean canning jar.  Can be kept in refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.

Notes;

• Cinnamon works as a nice substitute for cardamom