I grew up believing that a fruit salad was just different fruits cut up, placed in a bowl, and kept in the fridge for when hot children were hungry. While it was sweet and good, a fruit salad was hardly invigorating. If you were lucky (or mom was tired of you nagging her during the summer vacation) you could eat fruit salad with Neapolitan ice cream or custard.
I’m older and wiser now, with wonderful access to an amazing array of fruit salad recipes ideal for lunch, dinner, or dessert. Some of the recipes below are family favorites – perfect to combine with ice cream – while others are contemporary dishes designed to mix and match flavors and textures on your tongue and palate. I’m certain at least one of these delightful dishes will become part of your summertime routine.
1. Strawberry Basil Salad
Simple but oh so satisfying, Strawberry Basil Salad pairs the summer fruit favorite with nuts, cheese, green leaves, and a vibrant poppy seed vinaigrette. It’s the refreshing, easy-to-enjoy salad you call upon when you’re hot and not that hungry, or if you’re looking to bulk out grilled meat with something light and leafy.
2. Honey Berry Pear Salad
Honey Berry Pear Salad is a delightful dish of Armenian origin. It matches sweet summer pears and barberries with a few exotic additions to create a piquant, slightly spicy mix. With brandy and fresh chilis in the recipe, this is the type of salad ideal for those who like their summery sides with punch, power, and a little bit of mystery.
3. Millionaire Peach Salad
This is a salad in name only. Millionaire Peach Salad is a dessert, and a deliciously luxurious one at that. Peaches, jello, and cream cheese – the key to the millionaire moniker – combine in a creamy yet companionably sweet dish that you’re certain to return to for seconds.
4. Pineapple Cucumber Jalapeno Salad
There are summer flavor combinations equally at home in a salad bowl or in a cocktail shaker, and I’d thump the table for Pineapple, Cucumber, and Jalapeño Salad being one of them. Refreshing cucumber pieces and bold red onion balance out the competing heat and sweet of pineapple and jalapeños, in a uniquely flavored side that’s just perfect for grilling season.
5. No Mayo Broccoli and Blueberry Salad
No Mayo, Broccoli, and Blueberry Salad seems a completely diabolical choice, yet is an absolutely delicious and fun summer side dish (or dinner in a pinch). While this recipe smartly mixes subtle flavors, the truly special thing is how the salad combines different textures; smooth popping blueberry against crunchy greens.
6. Gram’s Frozen Fruit Salad
I’ve had a riotous variety of frozen fruits in my freezer over the last five years, as three teething children have had to combat a mouthful of aches and pains with icy cold sweetness. Gram’s Frozen Fruit Salad is the ultimate forzen mix, putting all manner of frosty fruits together to create a yummy dessert that helps you cool off when the heat’s on.
7. Ambrosia Fruit Salad
In Greek Mythology, ambrosia was described as the food of the gods (nectar was their favorite drink). So, if you are calling a dish Ambrosia Fruit Salad, it needs to be decadent and delightful enough to be enjoyed by even the most capricious! This fits the bill, with whipped cream, vanilla Greek yogurt and marshmallows giving the fruit salad a delectable touch of class.
Conclusion
Some of the best summer salads aren’t even salads at all, and that’s fine with me! If you can make side dishes and desserts made with flair and flavor to complement the rest of your diet and capitalize on available yummy fruit, you are going to enjoy good food much more over the warmest months.
What salads (and dessert) do you like to incorporate into your summer playlist?