Fruit Compote – The World’s Easiest

There are a lot of different ways to make fruit compote. Some recipes I’ve come across say to not add any water at all and just let the fruit stew it it’s own juices. To me, that sounds like a good way to burn perfectly good fruit. Others will tell you to add a little water and a diabetes-inducing amount of sugar. It all depends on the personal preferences of who’s going to be eating it, I guess. Personally, I like to have it on the syrupy side, with a fair amount of liquid in addition to the fruit.

What’s compote good for, you ask? Well, anything you feel like, really. But I have to say, if you put some over your pancakes, you will probably never want that HFCS-laden “pancake syrup” again. You will probably also eat enough pancakes for three people. Or maybe that’s just me. Moving on….

Another thing I love to do with fruit compote is to stir it into plain yogurt with some granola or other cereal. You could also stir some into your morning bowl of oatmeal. Or, how about over ice cream, or if you’re feeling industrious, use it to make your own fruit flavored ice cream. Spongecake, or better yet cheesecake, with some fruity, syrupy goodness spooned over top? You get the idea!

So, what I made most recently was a ridiculously simple strawberry-cherry compote. I had some strawberries I had frozen whole when they were on sale a while back, and a ton of black cherries to use up before they went to waste. But really, you can go crazy here with whatever you want. Add some spices like cinnamon, ginger, or a whole vanilla pod, citrus zest, mint, it’s all game. As for what fruits you use, it’s totally up to you. I’m particularly fond of berries and stone fruits like peaches or nectarines, but you can also use apples, pears, or just about anything else that you think is a good combination.

Simplest Fruit Compote

Ingredients:

2-3 cups frozen or fresh fruit, peeled and sliced or chopped into bite sized pieces if necessary
1/4 cup sugar, any kind you like (not artificial sweeteners!)
1/2 cup of water, or more or less depending on how thick you want it
Optional additions: 1 cinnamon stick, 1-2 slices fresh ginger, 1 vanilla pod, 1tsp (or more) grated lemon or orange zest, etc.

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water and and any spices you want to use and turn the heat up to high. When the syrup comes to a boil, add the fruit (carefully! Hot sugar syrup is painful.) and bring to a boil again. Turn the heat down to low and cook for at least 15 minutes, longer if you want a thicker, sweeter compote. Let it cool a little bit and use it right away, or store it in the fridge. It’ll last for at least a week, if not longer.