Skip to main content

You're the STAR Blog Hop & HOME Features

T his linky party is the perfect place to show off your creativity! Share your blog posts, for a chance to be featured next month!     WELCOME to the August 2022  " You're the Star " Blog Hop! Before we continue onto the Linky party I wanted to share from my blog: Keep cool during these last few weeks of summer with my delicious 3-Ingredient No Churn Ice Cream ! ___________________________ WELCOME to  HOME feature week of the August 2022  " You're the STAR " blog hop! Meet your HOME week Hosts   This week is HOME feature week Swing by the Home Hosts' Blogs: Bev from Eclectic Red Barn Cindy from Mom, the Lunch Lady Niki from Life as a LEO Wife This is a month long Linky party featuring YOU! There will be 4 different features each week and 4 different feature categories.  Just to be clear - this is NOT a themed party - you may link up ANY family-friendly blog posts any day of each month.   The "theme" occurs in our weekly features:

Fresh Fruit Salad with Caramel Cream Dressing

 Tart, flavourless winter berries and fruit are jazzed up by tossing them in a creamy caramel dressing. Elevating that often less flavourful winter fruit to new heights!

My kiddos love almost every kind of fruit. As a Mom, that makes me super happy. I'd rather have them reach for a piece of fruit, than for candy. During the winter, fresh fruit can get a little dull and boring. Imported berries and tropical fruits are so expensive, so we find ourselves eating more apples, pears, oranges and bananas. Sometimes we get lucky and we can find some reasonably priced berries, but I find they aren't as sweet as the local berries we get in the summer. When I buy a batch of berries that aren't that sweet, I like to turn them into a fruit salad, with tons of other fruit.

On my last trip to the store, I found some strawberries and blueberries that were on sale. I brought some home, but the kiddos weren't too crazy for them, saying they were a bit tart. I decided to throw them together with some other fruits I had on hand. My kiwi was also tart, so I figured they could also do with a little makeover. I had some caramel, that I had bought as a treat, so I warmed it in the microwave for 15 seconds to make it easier to pour. I also had a bit of whipped cream leftover from my daughter's birthday, which I threw in the salad as well. The two made a wonderful creamy dressing, with a deep rich flavor. It coated the fruit and added a wonderful sweetness, without being too sweet. The kids enjoyed the fruit I had purchased and nothing went to waste. This fruit salad makes the perfect side dish with waffles or pancakes, or a fresh delicious dessert after dinner. It comes together in under 15 minutes and brings those flavourless berries to a higher level of taste.

What fruits can I use in fruit salad?

You can use pretty much any fruit you have on hand. Berries, apples, pears, oranges, exotic fruits like mango, dragon fruit, lychee. The possibilities are endless! Fruit salad is a healthy way to use up any fruit that may be going bad in your refrigerator! 

How long will fruit salad keep?

Depending on the fruit you use, fruit salad will hold up in the fridge for 2-4 days. Softer fruit like sliced strawberries, bananas and mango will soften over time, while more sturdy fruit such as apple, oranges and blueberries/cherries will last longer in this creamy dressing.

How to make the perfect fruit salad

Fruit salad is a very forgiving dish. You can pretty much use any fruit you enjoy, in any combination imaginable. It can be a simple as berries tossed with a bit of lime juice and sugar, to a hearty winter fruit salad such as this one. 

Choose fruit your family loves.

Choose fruit that aren't too watery. Water melon for example will weep and lead to a very wet fruit salad. Choose fruit that are perfectly ripe. Berries that are too ripe aren't the best in fresh fruit salad. You want that firm bite and pop when eating your fruit salad. 

Get creative with dressings. Use citrus juices, caramel sauces, whipped cream. Fruit salad is one of those recipes where there aren't any strict rules.

Fruit is packed packed with vitamins, nutrients and fibre that help support a healthy diet. Generally low in calories and high in fibre, fruit can help in loosing weight. Some fruits are linked to lowering blood pressure, lowering the risk of diabetes and heart disease. So, fruit salad is a delicious way to get those 4-5 servings per day!

Equipment needed for this recipe

  • serving bowl
  • sharp pairing knife
  • cutting board
  • mixing bowl
  • spatula
Fresh Fruit Salad with Caramel Cream Dressing

1 pint of blueberries
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and chopped
1 C strawberries, chopped
1 C red grapes, sliced in half
3 kiwi, peeled and chopped
3 clementine oranges, peeled and separated into segments
2 oz caramel dip (found in the produce section)
1/2 C real whipped cream (can sub cool whip)

Peel and chop all fruit and combine into a large bowl.

Heat the caramel dip in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Pour onto the fruit, along with the whipped cream. Stir to combine.

Pour into a serving bowl and cover with plastic wrap.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes and stir again before serving.

PIN IT!!!


I'm sharing this recipe with these linky parties!

Comments

  1. I haven't had a fruit salad in a long time, and never one with caramel, but this looks so yummy! My kids would LOVE this. Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! My kiddos thought it was super yummy!

      Delete
  2. Yum! I’ve never had fruit salad this way. I can imagine that the caramel dressing adds a delicious flavor to the fruit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It really does. It's perfect for those berries that disappoint once you get home from the store LOL

      Delete
  3. Thank you for stopping in. I hope you enjoy it, should you try it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great thinking! I've recently bought some strawberries that are languishing away in the fridge. No one wants them because they have no flavour! I am going to give this a try.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love recipes that are easy peasy like this! I'll bet it disappears quickly - who doesn't love caramel??

    ReplyDelete
  6. This looks amazing. Perfect for my kiddos, especially if they'll eat their fruit!

    ReplyDelete
  7. caramel dressing sounds interesting. the kids probably love it with the sweet coating!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh yum! This just made fruit salad so much better!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I’ve always been more of a vegetable girl, but this is a fruit salad I could get on board with! That caramel cream is a game changer!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I’ve always been more of a vegetable girl, but this is a fruit salad I could get on board with! That caramel cream is a game changer!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

We love hearing from you!! Let us know what you think.

Popular posts from this blog

No Yeast Old Fashion Cinnamon Rolls

 These delicious cinnamon sticky rolls have been in my family for over 40 yrs. No yeast is required, so you can whip up a batch of these in no time. Still tender, sticky sweet and delicious! Ever since I can remember Mom would make these as a special treat. It wasn't too often, but every once in a while, we'd come home to these no yeast cinnamon rolls, as an after school snack. Growing up, this is what I thought cinnamon rolls were. I wasn't aware that there was a yeast version of cinnamon rolls. As much as I LOVE the yeast version, this no yeast version seems to make an appearance more frequently here at home.  Since there is no yeast in the dough, it does not need to rise for 30 minutes before being rolled out and baked. When I worked in the retirement home the residents were always excited when I made these cinnamon rolls. They said it reminded them of their childhood. It was amazing seeing how happy a simple recipe could make them. I don't make these very often and

50+ Creative Cottage Meal Ideas

When the warm weather hits many of us head to the cottage, to enjoy the sunshine and time near the water. Instead of always packing up burgers and hot dogs, I've rounded up over 50 creative meal ideas for delicious breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Ever since I was little my family always enjoyed a few weeks camping at a near by provincial park, during the summer months. When us kids, became older and moved away, Mom and Dad bought a trailer which remained parked at a location, so we would often go and visit for a few weeks then too. My mom has always been an amazing cook and with her outside kitchen often made our family favourites, even at camp. Now that my SO and his family have a cottage, we are frequently there for most of the summer. Hamburgers and Hot Dogs seem to be our go to, so I wanted to collect new creative meals perfect to make while camping, or at the cottage.  Breakfast Recipes Healthy Banana Milkshake Thick, creamy banana milkshake made without ice cream, dairy, and

Black Forest Roll Cake

Light and fluffy cherry and whipped cream filling is rolled in an airy sponge cake. 13 years ago, I made a dinner that I was totally proud of. Not only did it taste wonderful, it looks fantastic too. I was so proud of myself that I took a photo, which I wanted to share with my friends and family. Only I didn't know how I could share it with everyone, at the same time. Then a thought came to me- a blog!!!  I've always been a foodie. While growing up, I'd often watch talk shows, just to see the cooking segments. I'd sit with a pen and paper, quickly jotting down ingredients and directions, to hopefully recreate recipes at home. I still remember a beet salad I begged my mom to let me make, asking her to buy raspberry wine vinegar for the dressing. It turned out to be something neither of us enjoyed, and up until a few years ago, Mom still had the vinegar in her cupboard.  I first started my first blog, Hun... What's  for Dinner?, as a way to share recipes with my famil