Christmas Fruit Salad

Easy 15-minute Christmas fruit salad with grapes, pineapple, apples, kiwis, citrus juices, and pomegranate seeds with honey dressing.

This winter fruit salad aka Christmas fruit salad is made with 5 different fruits bursting with fresh juices, colors, and a touch of summer flavor on our holiday table.

Thin dressing made of sweet honey and fresh citrusy juices not only adds tons of freshness but keeps all the chopped apple pieces and other fruits fresh and crisp until you serve the holiday fruit salad to your guests.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Healthy and easy dessert with tons of vitamins and goodness where all the fruits shine equally.
• A stunning way to eat fruits during winter.
• Easy Christmas fruit salad – you only need to chop ingredients and pour dressing!
• Fruit salad is perfect for kids and vegetarian parties, as a side dish, for potluck or Christmas brunch, and as a light dessert after the holiday meal.
• Fruit salad recipes make a great breakfast the next morning!

Ingredients Notes

To celebrate the Christmas season I pick red fruits like red apples, pomegranate arils, and red grapes, and green fruits like Granny Smith apples, kiwi, and green grapes. These can all be found pretty much year-round at the grocery store.

For The Fruit Salad

• Red and green grapes, halved. Make sure to either use seedless or remove seeds so you can properly enjoy your holiday dinner.
• Fresh pineapple, diced
• Apples: red apples (Honeycrisp or Fuji works well) and green apples (Granny Smith). I don’t peel the apples, but you should absolutely core them.
• Kiwis peeled and sliced. Kiwis can be prepped one day ahead and stored in the fridge.
• Pomegranate arils aka red seeds inside the fruit. Can be prepped 1-2 days in advance.

Fruit Salad Dressing

• Honey, maple syrup, or date syrup. Honey dressing won’t be sticky as citrus juices neutralize it and thin out the dressing.
• Orange juice, preferably freshly squeezed.
• Lemon juice, fresh is best. Dressing with some citrus or pineapple juice helps keep the fruit from turning brown.
• Garnish: fresh mint leaves, chopped

What Fruits Should Not Be Mixed In Fruit Salad?

Bananas brown and fall apart and turn into mush too quickly, so I often skip them in the fruit salad. They also don’t go well with mangoes if you use them in the salad.

If you have sensitive teeth, I recommend skipping the pineapples too. You can use canteloupe instead.

Avoid adding too much watermelon. It can be very watery and all the juices will collect at the bottom of the dish.

Kitchen Equipment

• large serving bowl for salad and a small mixing bowl to prep the dressing. Use a glass bowl to be able to see all the fruits and colors or a Christmas tree-shaped serving bowl.

How To Make This Christmas Fruit Salad Recipe

1. Combine the grapes (both varieties), pineapple, chopped apples (both varieties), kiwi, and pomegranate seeds in a large mixing bowl.
2. Whisk the honey, orange juice, and lemon juice together in a small bowl until well combined.
3. Pour the honey mixture over the fruit and gently toss or fold all of the ingredients together to coat the fruit with the sauce and mix throughout.
4. Refrigerate until ready to serve or at least for 2 hours. It is best enjoyed chilled.
5. Garnish with sprigs of mint before serving.

Storage

Storing. Store the fruit salad in an airtight container for 3 days in the fridge.

Freezing. You can freeze fresh fruit salad for 1 month. Thaw in the fridge for 3-4 hours before serving.

Making Ahead

I don’t recommend making Christmas fruit salad ahead of time, as it tastes best when fresh. The longer it stays in the fridge the more juices come out of the prepared fruit and soggier they become. Wash grapes right before making the salad.

However, the honey lime dressing or honey orange juice dressing can be made 2-3 days ahead and refrigerated.

Substitutions & Variations

• It goes without saying – you can use any of your favorite fruits or berries (red strawberries or raspberries) that are available. Red and green fruit would be best to keep the festive spirit for Christmas dinner.
• I make fresh fruit salad, but you can use some preserved and canned fruit too, like canned mandarin oranges, pears, pineapple, peaches, and whatever fruit you love but can’t find fresh. Make sure to drain the juices from the can and either uses a bit for dressing or discard.
• A simpler dressing with honey is just to mix honey and lime juice. If you want something creamy, coconut vanilla yogurt or coconut ice cream is a super nice pairing. You can add some warm spices to the dressing to make the salad even more festive.
• Decorations. The classic combo of maraschino cherries and a dollop of whipped cream (like Cool Whip or homemade) adds to a fun presentation. I like using fresh mint leaves for garnish, but you can also use chopped nuts, jello cubes, toasted coconut, tiny marshmallows, some granola (added as the very last step), or citrus zest in your Christmas salad.
• Try adding different ingredients to this easy fruit salad such as fresh strawberries, mini marshmallows, or spiced syrup in place of honey, especially when serving it alongside plain yogurt or even cinnamon rolls. 

More Green & Red Fruit To Try

Here are more sweet and tangy fresh or canned fruit options for a light Christmas fruit salad:

Red Fruits

• Red berries: cherries, redcurrants, strawberries (full or sliced), raspberries, and cranberries.
• Pomegranate seeds
• Red apples
• Red pears
• Blood orange
• Grapefruit
• Watermelon
• Plum
• Red grapes
• * Red chili if you want spicy!

Green Fruits

• Green grapes
• Kiwi
• Green apples
• Green pears
• Green melon (Honeydew)
• Guava
• Feijoa
• Gooseberries
• Pomelo

Expert Tips To Make The Best Fruit Salad For Christmas

• Serve immediately in a large bowl or in an individual glass trifle dish for each guest – the layers of sweet fruit salad are so stunning!
• Frozen fruits don’t work in this recipe.
• Cut all the fruit in somehow equal bite-sized pieces to get the most of the yellow, red, and green fruits in every bite. But don’t cut it too small to avoid squishing fruits.
• Always stir gently as fruits are subtle and can break.
• Do not drown the salad in the dressing. Always remove the seeds from the fruits you’re using.

Popular Questions

What Is The Best Fruit For Christmas?

Traditional fruits on the Christmas menu are apples and cranberries, but in some regions of the world it is also mandarines and regular oranges,

How Do You Arrange Fruit For Christmas?

You can make Christmas brunch fruit salad with your favorite fruit and light honey dressing or arrange fresh fruit on a charcuterie board shaped like a Christmas tree.

You can also cut the shapes of Christmas-themed items from the fruits like kiwi, pears, apples, or canteloupe.

Can I Cut Up The Fruit For A Fruit Salad The Night Before?

Do not cut apples, pears, or bananas for the fruit salad the night before – they will turn brown. Most fruits will leave out all the juice once cut so the fruit salad recipes are best to be made fresh.

How Does Gordon Ramsay Make A Fruit Salad?

Gordon Ramsay makes a morning fruit salad with pineapples, green apples, pears, cucumber, and mangoes, and the dressing with fresh chili, tamarind paste, palm sugar, lime juice, lime zest, and crushed toasted peanuts. 

If you love this holiday side dish recipe, you’re going to love these recipes to pair it with too. Please click each link below to find the easy, printable recipe!

More Great Salads

Autumn Pasta Salad

Broccoli Salad Recipe with Dried Cherries

Cranberry Salad Recipe

Easy Fruit Salad

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