These super easy, juicy, roasted strawberries can be used in a variety of ways! A very versatile recipe. I love summer strawberries. Ontario strawberries in summer are super sweet with a deep red color. While my favorite way to enjoy strawberries is just as they are – fresh, sweet, juicy; I do like to buy strawberries in bulk sometimes. But then of course, I need to figure out how to keep them for longer. Yes, you can make strawberry jam, strawberry relish, strawberry shortcake (or strawberry shortcake ice cream!), and even strawberry based drinks like this strawberry shrub. But I do love the simplicity of roasted strawberries!
Why I love making roasted strawberries
This is better than making strawberry coulis on the stove top because,
Roasting strawberries concentrates the strawberry flavor (much like slow roasted tomatoes), and you end up with a flavorful sweet strawberry syrup along with softened strawberries as well. You can roast them for a shorter time to keep the strawberries more firm, or roast them longer for a softer strawberry mix. So it’s easy to customize. Speaking of customizing, you can add all kinds of other flavors to infuse your roasted strawberries to make them even better! A very versatile recipe. Endless ways to use these roasted strawberries!
How to make roasted strawberries
Ingredients
Strawberries – Fresh strawberries are best, but you can absolutely use frozen strawberries too. Sweetener – White sugar, honey or maple syrup. An acid – This helps to brighten the strawberry flavor. Lemon is the best choice to keep it more neutral. You can also use a nice vinegar (not white vinegar). Flavoring – Here I add classic vanilla and some salt, but you can add other flavors too.
Method
To make oven roasted strawberries, first preheat the oven to 400 F / 205 C. Rinse and dry the strawberries with a kitchen napkin or paper towel. Halve or quarter the larger strawberries, so that they are roughly the same shape. The smaller strawberries can be kept whole. Place the strawberries in a bowl and add all the additions. Toss to combine. Spread the strawberries out in a baking dish and bake in the preheated oven. The smaller the baking dish and the more crowded the strawberries are, the more syrup you get from your strawberries. This will result in a more “stewed” strawberry. In contrast, the larger the baking dish and more spread out your strawberries are, you will get less syrup, and more of a “roasted” strawberry. So you can choose the baking dish and alter the results of your roasted strawberries to your liking. I like having more syrup, so I use a 9 x 13 inch baking pan. You can bake these strawberries for as little as 25 minutes, or go for 40 minutes for softer strawberries. Once baked, let the roasted strawberries cool IN THE PAN, and then transfer them into a jar or container.
Storage
These oven roasted strawberries can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week in an air-tight container. But make sure to use clean spoons when scooping out the strawberries to prevent contamination. You can also store this in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Adding more flavor to your strawberries
To make your roasted strawberries more flavorful, you can try different flavor combinations that complement or enhance the strawberry flavor. Instead of lemon juice, use balsamic vinegar to make roasted balsamic strawberries. Add some rose water extract or orange blossom extract along with vanilla, which will add a wonderful floral note to your summery strawberries. Freshly cracked black pepper will add a little heat to the sweet strawberries. This is one of my favorite additions! If you have pink peppercorns, even better! Change the sweetener from white sugar to honey or maple syrup to add more depth to the sweetness in your roasted strawberries.
Uses for roasted strawberries
Roasted strawberries make for some of our favorite fruit desserts and summer recipes.
As a topping for breakfast foods such as, Oat meal Pancakes Waffles Crepes Toast As a topping for desserts such as, Ice cream Cheesecakes Angel food cake or sponge cake Yogurt To make strawberry flavored desserts such as, Strawberry ice cream (like this strawberry shortcake ice cream!) Strawberry cheesecake Strawberry buttercream To serve as part of an appetizer with, Whipped feta or goat cheese Brie Any cheese board
