A patriotic fruit salad is the hit of summer picnics and perfect for Independence Day and Memorial Day celebrating. The colors of the American flag is the perfect way to celebrate patriotic holidays in a healthy, low calorie way!
Summer Fruit Salads are a staple of summer barbecues for good reason. The fresh fruit is sweet and refreshing. It's a dish the entire family loves AND it's a great side dish that's a perfect addition to any gathering or meal.
If you are looking for lower calories patriotic desserts, add a spray of low-fat or low-sugar whipped cream on the fruit salad! The perfect patriotic dessert!
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What makes this skinny?
It's all fresh fruits which are not only lower in calories but high in nutrition and fiber. The options on how to serve also does not add any high calorie fatty options that take away from the healthy addition of this salad to your summer bbqs!
If on WW you'll love the points too (there aren't any).
Recipe Ingredient Notes
Any combination of red fruit, white fruit and blue fruits can be used! Check out the lists below of different fruits you can swap in!
Blackberries. You'll need one 6-ounce container.
Blueberries. You'll need one 6-ounce container.
Raspberries. You'll need one 6-ounce container. See the note under Expert Tips for preparing raspberries.
Strawberries. Use one 16-ounce container of sweet strawberries. Be sure to select strawberries that are ripe (no white or green on the fruit) and not bruised.
Apples. Three medium or two large apples will be used. Rinse, dry and core the apples before cutting into bite-size piece. They do not need to be peeled. Use sweet apples versus tart (Granny Smith) apples.
How to make this Red White and Blue Fruit Salad
In a large serving bowl combine the fresh strawberries, fresh blueberries and raspberries, and chopped apple.
Stir all ingredients together. Serve at room temperature or chilled. See ways to serve it below!
Three Ways to Serve it
- If the fruit is fully ripe and sweet, serving the summer salad as is with just the flavors of the fruits is perfect.
- To brighten up the flavors, squeeze on the juice of 1-2 limes; toss to combine. The lime brightens the sweetness of the fruit. If the fruit isn't very sweet it can make it less sweet.
- If the fruit is not sweet add 2-3 teaspoons of granulated sugar to the lime juice, stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour onto the fruit and toss. Allow the fruit to sit for 20 minutes. This is called macerating the fruit. It softens the fruit while pulling moisture out and allows a thin syrup to form which will sweeten the fruit.
Expert Tips
Select fully ripe fruit. The riper the fruit the more flavor and natural sweetness it will have. This helps avoid adding sweeteners to the fresh fruit salad (keeps the calories lower).
Rinse and allow fruit to dry. For berries especially after rinsing place them on a few layers of paper towels to absorb excess moisture. Raspberries in particular are very delicate and can become water logged. Letting some of the excess moisture be absorbed before adding them to the salad will have better texture and they'll last longer.
More fruit options
Any combination of fruits you love make the perfect salad! The lists below give options for each color fruit great for a patriotic salad.
Red Fruits
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Red Grapes
- Watermelon
- Blood Oranges
- Cherries
- Pomegranate
White Fruits
- White Peaches
- White Nectarines
- Banana. Bananas will oxidize (turn brown) if exposed to the air for an extended period of time. They also don't stand up well in leftovers. We recommend these if making and serving directly.
- Pear
- Apples
- Dragon fruit. This fruit can have different color flesh but one that is easier to find is white with small black seeds.
- Carambola. Also called Star Fruit this fruit is actually light yellow, not white. BUT we've included it because if you cut it crosswise it makes perfect stars ideal for a red white and blue fruit salad for a patriotic salad.
- White Currants
- Rambutan. This tropical fruit is the size of a golf ball with a red spiky exterior and soft globular fruit inside. It's easy to peel and the fruit is a sweet, light flavor. They would be most easy to find at an Asian market or a store with a more extensive produce department like Whole Foods. The one downside for a fruit salad is that they have a small pit. Like peaches some are freestone (meaning you could easily separate the pit from the flesh) and some are clingstone which are harder to cut out.
- Lychee. Another delicious tropical fruit similar in size to rambutan. The exterior is a thin red bumpy peel that's easy to remove. It also has a pit that is easy to remove like you would removing a pit from an avocado. The flavor is light like a cross between strawberries and watermelon. You'd find this where you'd find rambutan.
Blue Fruits
- Blueberries
- Blackberries
- Plums
- Concord Grapes
Make Star shapes
A favorite addition to a red white and blue fruit salad for a Fourth of July celebration or Memorial Day weekend is adding fruit stars. All you need is a small star cookie cutter!
Watermelon, dragon fruit or apple slices are easy to turn into stars making your festive fruit salad a hit without loads of effort.
How to Store
Store in an airtight covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days (for leftovers). If any sweetened syrup has been it may not last as long. The salad it best served at room temperature or chilled right after making.
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Recipe
Red White and Blue Fruit Salad
Ingredients
- 1 6-ounce container blackberries rinsed, allowed to dry on paper towels
- 1 6-ounce container blueberries rinsed, allowed to dry on paper towels
- 1 6-ounce container raspberries rinsed, allowed to dry on paper towels
- 1 16-ounce container strawberries rinsed, allowed to dry on paper towels. Stems removed, sliced or chopped
- 3 medium apples rinsed, dried, cores and seeds removed. Cut into bite-size pieces. They do not need to be peeled.
Optional (see recipe notes)
- Juice of 1-2 limes
- 2-3 teaspoons granulated sugar only if needed
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine the blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and apples. Gently fold them together to fully combine.
- If desired add lime juice or lime juice plus sugar if needed to sweeten the fruit (see notes below). Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Notes
- If the fruit is fully ripe and sweet, serving the summer salad as is with just the flavors of the fruits is perfect.
- To brighten up the flavor, squeeze on the juice of 1-2 limes; toss to combine. The lime brightens the sweetness of the fruit. If the fruit isn't very sweet it can make it less sweet.
- If the fruit is not sweet add 2-3 teaspoons of granulated sugar to the lime juice, stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour onto the fruit and toss. Allow the fruit to sit for 20 minutes. This is called macerating the fruit. It softens the fruit while pulling moisture out and allows a thin syrup to form which will sweeten the fruit.
Erica says
So simple and so delicious. Great anytime and especially Memorial Day and 4th of July.
Lizzy says
Thank you! Made it for a picnic gathering this weekend. It was perfect.
Florence says
Always love fruit salad in summer and this one is perfect to celebrate red, white and blue holidays!
Janessa says
I was hoping to find something on your site to take to a Memorial Day cookout where I know everything is going to be high calorie. This was perfect! Festive color combo and great for our hot temperatures.
Kim says
I made this the other day and the whole family raved about it. It was delicious!
Agnes says
Delicious!! I could eat this all day! Great snack for kids and adults alike.
Allyssa says
Super loved this amazing recipe! Thanks a lot for sharing this super easy to make recipe! Fam really loves it! Will surely have this again!
Paula K says
So fun and healthy. We all love this salad!
Caroline says
So simple and perfect for a potluck.
Michelle says
Such a fantastic and fun way to celebrate! Love the idea of cutting the fruit into shapes!
Michele says
So easy to make and sweet and refreshing. It was delicious. I'll be making this again for Memorial Day. Thanks for the recipe.
Beth says
I love the patriotic colors and simple ingredients here. They're so light and they have such a great look for the holiday.
Katherine says
This is such a great healthy recipe for our fourth of july cookout!