Cooked Fruit Method
Use 2 cups of berries or other ripe fruit (apples, pears, bananas, peaches, cherries, nectarines, berries, mangoes, melons, citrus, pumpkins), picked over, washed and dried, pitted, and/or peeled as necessary; 1/2 cup sugar; and 3 tablespoons of butter. Chop the fruit or cut it in wedges. If you’re using citrus, cut it into segments. Combine the sugar and butter with 1/2 cup water in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, swirling the pan or stirring, until thick and syrupy but not colored, 3 to 5 minutes. Toss in the fruit and cook over low heat until the fruit begins to break up and release its juices, about 2 minutes for berries, longer for other fruit; some fruits, like apples, may require the addition of a little more water. Press the fruit through a fine-meshed strainer or run it through a food mill to purée and remove skins (if you left them on) or seeds. Serve warm, or let cool to room temperature. This sauce keeps well, refrigerated in an airtight container, for up to a week.