Fruit Salads to Help You Keep Your Healthy Resolutions - The Sweet Spot - Cooking

Find Your Way to Fruit Salad

No Comments | Written on January 5, 2012 at 11:00 am, by Amy Palanjian

I am one of those people who needs to have something sweet at the end of dinner. But normally, on weeknights at least, that sweetness comes in the form of either fruit (clementines and pineapple chunks are my two current must-haves) or dark chocolate.

Then the holidays came, and I had a sweet surprise. I was at a party with my extended family and we’d just enjoyed a delicious dinner of stuffed pork roast, sautéed broccoli raab, and baked ziti. But when the desserts came out, I found my eyes skipping over a ricotta cheesecake, a chocolate cake, and a Key lime pie and settling on the bright and colorful fruit salad.*

Yes, I was a little astonished, too.

There is something intensely delicious about naturally sweet fruit flavors, especially after a large dinner, and especially when it’s a little unexpected (not to mention that they can be part of your resolution to do more healthy eating).

Everyone said the chocolate cake was heavenly, and the Key lime pie was divine, but I had two servings of fruit simply because that was just what my taste buds were after. Whether you keep it simple and go sans sauce, you drizzle a little honey-sweetened yogurt over your diced fruit, or you make a simple dressing like the Fruit Bowl Salad with Honey Mint Dressing that’s pictured here, fresh fruit can be fancy and satisfying. I promise. It also can be reasonably priced if you look for what’s on sale and limit more expensive items (at this time of year that most likely means berries) to just a sprinkling.

*All of this fruit-salad-speak reminded me that when I was growing up, we had fruit cocktail out of a can at every holiday meal. I used to dig through to find the cherries, since they were my favorites, and while I’m glad that we’ve since switched over to fresh fruits, I also enjoy knowing that my food interests haven’t really changed that much since I was seven!