Perfect Summer Fruit Salad (with Honey Lime Dressing)

This simple side dish is a summertime favorite! The star shapes, red, white, & blue fruit, plus the tangy honey lime dressing make it perfect for summer picnics, backyard bbqs, cookouts, or summer parties.

Serve watermelon margaritas with watermelon stars and you'll be all set!

❤️ Why you'll love it

• Simple recipe.
• A refreshing, colorful fruit salad that's perfect for warm summer days.
• Takes very little effort - it's done in about 10 minutes.

This is the perfect summer fruit salad recipe!

It's a refreshing summer side dish or light dessert! Seasonal fruit like melons and fresh strawberries plus a simple honey-lime dressing create a burst of flavor.

🧾 Ingredients

🔪 Instructions

Note: This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the green recipe card below.

1. Mix the lime juice and honey.
2. Add the mint and set aside.
3. Cut the fruit in star shapes.
4. Mix it all together.

🥫 Storage

Fresh fruit salad is best eaten right away (or within a couple of hours of making it) but you can keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.

This dish doesn't freeze well as a salad but you can freeze leftovers and use them for breakfast smoothies.

📖 Variations

• You can substitute agave nectar for the honey. Either will help the dressing adhere to the fruit and add a little sweetness.
• You could also use lemon or orange juice instead of lime. 
• Other fruit that would work great in this salad include: apples, cherries, kiwi fruit, apples, honeydew, mandarin oranges, fresh pineapple, seedless grapes, and raspberries.
• Don't be afraid to substitute the fruit that looks best at your grocery store or farmer's market for what's listed in the recipe.
• Tropical fruits are yummy in this fruit salad, too!
• Dragon fruit is a delicious addition.

💭 Things to know

Expert Tip: The flavor of your honey will make a huge difference in the finished flavor of this red white & blue fruit salad. Use a light honey - like clover honey, orange blossom honey, or wildflower honey for best results.

• This patriotic fruit salad recipe is perfect all summer long but I especially love it for Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day.
• Make sure the fruit is very ripe for the best flavor. Fresh ingredients make all the difference!
• If you use light colored fruits like apples or pears swishing them in a little lemon juice is a good idea. It will keep them from discoloring.
• An easy way to peel peaches is to drop them in boiling water for 10-20 seconds then fish them out - the peel will slip right off!
• If the watermelon slices are too thin, they may break while you’re trying to cut the stars. But if they’re too thick you may not be able to get the cookie cutter through - cut them about one inch thick.
• Use a clear glass bowl so all the colors and shapes of the pretty salad is easy to see.
• Top with a little whipped cream or Cool Whip to make it more of a dessert.
• If you have leftovers you can freeze them for smoothies and smoothie bowls.
• Seedless watermelon works best in this easy summer fruit salad.
• I like to eat fruit at room temperature - even in this salad. I just think that allows more of the fruit flavor to come through than when it's cold. Serve it the way you like best.

👩‍🍳 FAQs

Here are the questions I am most frequently asked about this recipe.

📚 Related recipes

• How to Make a Watermelon Basket - is easier than you might think! You can even serve this fabulous summer fruit salad in it!
• Margaritas by the Pitcher for Cinco de Mayo- is it even summer if there's not a pitcher or margaritas nearby?
• Lemon Ice Box Pie is made just like Grandma's! Eagle Brand and plenty of lemon flavor! So easy!

🍽️ Serve with...

• Grilled Lipton Onion Soup Burgers are always juicy and delicious!
• Old-Fashioned Macaroni Salad is a must at summer picnics and parties.
• No bake pineapple cream cheese pie is so easy to make and eat!
• Cocktails by the pool? Try this pretty blue electric lemonade.

📞 The last word

Some of the best things about the summer months when I was growing up were the pool parties that my parents used to throw.

Lots of red, white, and blue decor and food - like this easy Jello poke cake.

They'd have themed 4th of July parties every year - one year it was Christmas and they decorated the pool area with Christmas decor and "Santa" showed up and handed out presents.

I don't throw the amazing summer parties that my parents did but I do like to recreate the easy salad recipes that Mom served in that iconic 1960s style.

Try this on a hot summer day - you'll love it!

If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need. Don't forget that you can click on "add to collection" to save it to your own, private recipe box!

If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📖 Recipe

4.50 from 2 votes

Summer Fruit Salad

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This easy summer fruit salad is the perfect addition to backyard bbqs, cookouts, pool parties, and picnics!. Sweet summer fruit is covered with a tangy dressing made with fresh lime juice, mint leaves, and honey. Make it extra pretty by cutting some of the fruit in star shapes.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American - Southern

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes minutes

Servings:10

Calories:205

Author:Marye Audet-White

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Equipment Needed

• ▢
  mixing bowl
• ▢
  Star shaped cookie cutter

Ingredients

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 watermelon, seedless
• ▢ 2-3 peaches
• ▢ 16 ounces strawberries
• ▢ 16 ounces blueberries
• ▢ 2 ½ tablespoons honey, mild honey like wildflower or orange blossom
• ▢ 1 tablespoon mint, chopped
• ▢ 1 lime

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Instructions

Honey Lime Dressing

• Place the honey in a bowl. Cut the lime in half and squeeze both halves into the bowl, being careful not to get any seeds in there.
• Add chopped mint. Whisk until mixed well. Set aside for 30 minutes.

Fruit

• Wash the strawberries. Drain well and gently pat dry with paper towel.
• Core and hull the berries -discard stems. ( To hull berries: with a paring knife, pierce the berry where the stem meets the core. Twist, using your thumb to guide the knife, and remove the core and stem)
• Chop the strawberries into a large dice and add to a large mixing bowl.
• Wash blueberries. Drain well, gently pat with paper towel, and add them to the bowl.

Cut Star Shapes

• Slice the watermelon so that you have big round slices. Each slice should be about an inch or so thick. If they're too thin the stars will break - too thick and you won't be able to get the cookie cutter through them.
• Lay each slice flat. Using the star cookie cutter, push it into the watermelon to cut out a star.
• Repeat until you’ve cut out as many stars as you can.
• Place the watermelon stars in the bowl with the strawberries and blueberries.
• Next, remove the skin from the peaches and slice the peaches into ½-inch thick flat pieces. Do this by cutting straight down until you reach the pit then slice straight down on the other side until you reach the pit.
• Lay the pieces flat and use the cookie cutter to cut stars out of the peach slices - like you did with the watermelon. Make as many stars as you can and then place them in the bowl.

Assemble the Fruit Salad

• Carefully mix all the fruit in the bowl until it’s evenly coated in the dressing.
• Drizzle the honey lime dressing over the fruit.
• Garnish with a sprinkle of lime zest on top of the fruit.

Notes

Storage:

This is best eaten right away but will keep in the fridge covered for 2-3 days.

The salad does not freeze well -the fruit gets mushy but you can still use leftovers for smoothies.

Tips: 

• The flavor of your honey will make a huge difference in the finished flavor of this fruit salad. Use a light honey - like clover honey, orange blossom honey, or wildflower honey for best results.
• You can substitute agave nectar for the honey. 
• An easy way to peel peaches is to drop them in boiling water for 10-20 seconds then fish them out - the peel will slip right off!
• If you use light colored fruits like apples or pears swishing them in a little lemon juice is a good idea. It will keep them from discoloring.
• You could also use lemon or orange juice instead of lime.
• Other fruit that would work great in this salad include: apples, cherries, kiwi fruit, apples, honeydew, mandarin oranges, fresh pineapple, seedless grapes, and raspberries - really any of your favorite fruits!
• If the watermelon slices are too thin, they may break while you’re trying to cut the stars. But if they’re too thick you may not be able to get the cookie cutter through - cut them about one inch thick.

Read the full post above for more tips and substitutions.

You'll find more helpful tips and variations in the body of the post.

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 205kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 6mg | Potassium: 678mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 42g | Vitamin A: 2713IU | Vitamin C: 72mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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First published April 25, 2022. Last updated April 27, 2023 for readability.