Packable Fresh Fruit Salad

Name: Packable Fresh Fruit Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 pound strawberries, hulled and quartered; 2 oranges, peeled and wedges cut in half; 2 apples, peeled and chopped; 1 large mango, peeled and chopped; 2 cups watermelon, peeled and chopped; 1 banana, peeled and sliced; 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (about 1 large orange); Zest of 1 lemon

by Deborah on Mar 17, 2019 (updated Sep 30, 2023) 0 comments

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This Packable Fresh Fruit Salad is luscious and sweet and loaded with an army of nutritional benefits. It makes a perfect side dish to serve at any backyard barbecue and potluck and it also makes a great make-ahead snack to take with you to work or school.

Learn how to make fruit salad with this easy fruit salad recipe. It’s loaded with basic supermarket staple fruits that you can usually find all year round.

When I was growing up, there was always an abundance of fruit in our kitchen. And when summertime rolled around, my mom and I would head off to the local farmers markets and bring home copious amounts of fruit. There were many summer mornings that I’d come out to the kitchen and find my mom standing at the counter cutting up fruit to make a big gorgeous fruit salad with. We always had fruit for breakfast. My mom would either serve juicy slices of cantaloupe, tomato, or heaping spoonfuls of fruit salad with our breakfast. This Packable Fresh Fruit Salad is a refreshing fruit salad made with basic fruits that you should be able to find at your local market all year long. This is one of those easy recipes to pull together last minute to take to a barbecue or potluck. Everyone loves a cold fresh fruit salad for dining al fresco on a hot summer day! Or you can make it ahead and pack it to take to work, school or for a pre or post workout snack,

Fruit Salad Recipe

These are the basic fruit salad ingredients you’ll need.

Fresh strawberries
Oranges
Apples
Mango
Watermelon
Banana
Orange Juice (fresh squeezed)
Lemon zest

Variations

Add any other seasonal fruits that you like to the mix.

Blueberries, raspberries and blackberries
Cherries
Cantaloupe
Mango
Pineapple
Peaches

How to Make Fruit Salad

Fruit salad comes together in about 10-15 minutes. It’s best if allowed to chill for 20-30 minutes before serving.

Prepare fruit: Wash, rinse and cut the fruit into bite-size pieces.
Mix fruit: Add the cut fruit to a large bowl and toss.
Dress salad: Drizzle the orange juice and lemon zest over the salad and toss again.
Chill: Refrigerate fresh fruit salad before serving

Benefits of Fruit

Fresh fruit provides energy and supplies an array of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber that promotes good health and acts as a natural cleanser and detoxifier.

Apples are a rich source of vitamin C, potassium and vitamin K. Apples also contain pectin, which is a prebiotic fiber which promotes good bacteria in our gut to help aid with digestion.
Watermelon provides a high water content, and it’s a rich source of lycopene, beta-carotene, and vitamin C, and potassium and magnesium.
Oranges are a rich source of vitamin C, folate, potassium and fiber.
Bananas are loaded with both soluble and insoluble fiber. Bananas are also a rich source of essential vitamins and minerals, such as potassium, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, folate, riboflavin and vitamin B6.
Mango is known as the “king of fruit” because it’s a rich source of antioxidants that may help to protect our DNA from damage that can lead to degenerative diseases. Mango is a rich source of the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin which help to protect the retina and lens in our eyes, and may help to ward off, or at lease slow the progression of, cataracts and macular degeneration. Apparently just one cup of mango provides about 1/4 of the daily target for vitamin A, which helps to strengthen our immune system and ward off infection.
Strawberries are rich with anti-inflammatory antioxidants called anthocyanin and catechin, which help to promote eye health and neurological health

Benefits of Eating Fruit

How much fruit should we eat in a day? Some say we should eat 2 cups of fresh fruit a day, while other studies suggest eating five servings of fresh fruits and vegetables every day to give a boost to our immune systems and enhance our overall health. (1) Adding fruit to your diet is as simple as eating an apple with your lunch, adding berries or slices of banana to your breakfast cereal, drinking a fruit smoothie or eating a portion of a mixed fruit salad like this one. If I plan ahead and make up a big gorgeous fresh fruit salad to keep in my refrigerator, I will graze on it all day long!

Looking for More Easy Fruit Salad Recipes to Make?

If you’re not new here – then you know that I have a thing for fruit flavored ice cubes. These are a fun and easy way to incorporate more fruit into your diet and to help you stay hydrated throughout the day.

And these fruit drink recipes are also another great way to incorporate more fruit into your diet and to hep you stay hydrated on a daily basis.

Yield: 4-6 servings