Strawberry and Vanilla Sauce

I found this recipe in Homemade Living: Canning & Preserving with Ashley English: All You Need to Know to Make Jams, Jellies, Pickles, Chutneys & More, and when my best friend came to visit last weekend we decided to give it a whirl. It was so yummy! We made two batches, but I am wishing that we had made more. My family loves this. It's really great on waffles, and I'm sure it would taste great on vanilla ice cream or angel food cake as well. Perhaps if I catch up on the other many things that need to be done around my house I will make a few more.  The recipe in the book called for the seeds of one vanilla bean. I used one long vanilla bean and didn't feel like it was enough vanilla flavor, so I added a teaspoon of good Mexican vanilla and it was perfect.

Strawberry Vanilla Sauce
5 pints strawberries, hulled and sliced
1& 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water
3 Tablespoons bottled lemon juice
2 vanilla beans, sliced lengthwise (or 2 teaspoons high quality vanilla)

1. Sterilize jars, lids and screw rings. 2. Measure 3 cups of sliced strawberries into a glass bowl. Crush with a potato masher. (I used a plastic one for this and I really wish I had a metal one, it would have been easier.) 3. Combine water and sugar in a large saucepan over low heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved. 4. Add crushed berries and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 7 minutes. Stir frequently. 5. Add remaining strawberries and lemon juice. 5. Scrape vanilla bean seeds from pod into pot. 6. Bring the mixture back to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. 7. Ladle into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Tighten until finger-tip tight. 8. Place in canner and process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath. Makes 6-7 half pint jars.