It’s summer, it’s hot and we’re constantly looking for, and creating, recipes that are delicious, colourful and that help keep us cool! While my parents have returned home now (from their almost 4 month visit), they left us with a few new habits.
Healthy refreshing fruit!
We always have fruit in the fridge and the fruit bowl, but for some reason, we don’t always eat as much as we should. My parents changed that while they were here. Back in the Azores, they have a decent sized orchard, so they’re used to having lots of seasonal fruit. They don’t sell any of it, so they end up giving lots of it to friends and family in our town… and of course, they eat lots. During their stay, they made sure we were fully stocked all the time and that fruit was a part of every meal. Even the boys were having more fruit than usual (thanks grandma and grandpa).
Anything goes
In this recipe, we’re just giving you an idea of quantities for fruit salad, but really, anything goes. You don’t need a recipe for fruit salad. The key to a successful fruit salad is to use fresh fruit that you love and is ripe, but not too ripe. Chop a bunch of it in a bowl, add a little flavour if you like, and voilà… a perfect fruit salad!
Buy local
Using locally grown fruit is usually a good bet because it’s fresher and hasn’t bounced around in boxes during a long journey. For today’s recipe, we gave our fruit salad a little twist to make it more grown-up 🙂 If you’re making this for guests, make half with and half without our twist, so the kids can enjoy the fruit salad as well… just make sure to label the grown-up bowl–kids shouldn’t eat the boozy version of this dessert!
For this recipe, if you don’t have icewine, try using any other grape-based sweet alcoholic beverage. In the Azores, we have a grape based-dessert wine called Angelica that’s perfect in this fruit salad. As I mentioned before, anything goes for fruit salad, so use our version, experiment with other liqueurs or leave out the booze all-together.
This summer, have something fruity and refreshing; give it your own twist, and always eat well, friends!
A refreshing fruit salad with a twist. Icewine (dessert wine) gives this fruit salad a wonderful grown-up flavour. A perfect summer dessert (not for kids).
Author: Nelson Cardoso
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: North American
Serves: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
½ cup icewine
¼ cup pure orange juice
2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
1 cup blackberries
½ cup raspberries
1 nectarine, peeled, pit removed and sliced
1 mandarine (about ¾ cups), seeded and cut in small pieces
½ cup blueberries,
1½ cup strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 cup cantaloupe, peeled and cut in small pieces
1 small to medium banana, peeled and sliced into half wheels
Instructions
Make sure all exposed fruit is rinsed
In a large measuring cup, whisk together the icewine, orange juice and brown sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Place this measuring cup with the sauce in the fridge for 20 minutes to chill.
Place all the fruit in a large bowl (follow chopping/slicing/peeling/pitting instructions in the ingredient list).
Pour the sauce over the fruit and gently mix with a large spoon to coat all the fruit.
Refrigerate for one hour and serve. Make sure to spoon some of the sauce over each serving.
Notes
Some of the fruit may start to loose it's shape or brown because of the sauce. We recommend serving this fruit salad within a few hours.
I really like this idea, perfect for the summer. Icewine is hard to come by in the UK (expensive), so whenever I’m back home I always grab a bottle or to take back with me. Can’t wait to try it on some fruit!
Hi Matt, this could also go nicely with other grape based liqueurs. You might have something comparable in the UK. Or, use this as an excuse to came back… “Can’t make this fruit salad without visiting Canada” 🙂 Thanks for stopping by. Take care.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
And it looks so innocent. 😉 LOVE it!!! This is so clever and sounds so delicious. 🙂
Thanks cakespy, it’s a little evil but tastes so good 🙂 Don’t forget to label it.
I really like this idea, perfect for the summer. Icewine is hard to come by in the UK (expensive), so whenever I’m back home I always grab a bottle or to take back with me. Can’t wait to try it on some fruit!
Hi Matt, this could also go nicely with other grape based liqueurs. You might have something comparable in the UK. Or, use this as an excuse to came back… “Can’t make this fruit salad without visiting Canada” 🙂 Thanks for stopping by. Take care.