There's nothing quite like a homemade strawberry preserve to add a touch of summer sweetness to your favorite vanilla ice cream. Today, we'll be making use of the leftover pulp from our raw strawberry syrup (you can find the process in our previous post about strawberry pop) - but you could use fresh berries instead.

This is a 'general idea' recipe, where you have the freedom to adjust the sweetness and tartness to your preference.

Ingredients:

• Leftover pulp from raw strawberry syrup or fresh berries

• Sugar

• Lemon (optional)

• A bit of water (optional, adjust for consitency)

Instructions:

1. Begin by pouring the strawberry pulp into a pot. The amount of sugar you add is up to you, but a good starting point might be equal parts sugar and pulp.

2. Stir the sugar and strawberry pulp together and bring the mixture to a boil. The goal is to boil the mixture until the natural pectin in the strawberries starts to gel, creating that classic jam-like texture. We typically boil our mixture for around 10 minutes, but no longer than that.

3. If you want a more tart flavor, add a few drops of lemon juice to the mix. Stir well to combine.

4. Once the preserve has reached your desired consistency, remove it from the heat and let it cool.

You can store this strawberry preserve in a sterilized jar in the refrigerator, where it will keep for several days. However, in our home, the delicious strawberry preserve rarely lasts that long - Maybe until dessert and no longer! It's simply too tempting when spooned over a bowl of creamy vanilla ice cream, creating a dessert that's delightfully sweet, slightly tart, and oh so summery.