Berrylicious Fruit Salad with Orange-Vanilla Syrup
Berrylicious Fruit Salad with Orange-Vanilla Syrup is perfect for a brunch, shower, or anytime lunch!
Servings: 8 servings
Ingredients
Orange-Vanilla Syrup
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- Juice of 1 orange
- Zest of 1 orange
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Fruit salad
- 2 pints Strawberries hulled and halved
- 2 pints Blueberries
- 2 cups Red Grapes halved
- 2 cups Green Grapes halved
- Mint Leaves
- violas, or edible flowers to garnish if desired (Use only edible flowers that are chemical / pesticide free.)
Instructions
To make syrup:
- Place the sugar, water, orange juice, zest and vanilla into a small pan and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes to infuse and thicken slightly.
- Allow syrup to cool, then refrigerate until cold. Add cold syrup to cut up fruit, tossing gently, adjusting the ratio of syrup to fruit for your taste.
- Store any unused syrup in refrigerator in sealed, clean glass jar. Syrup will last a couple of weeks in fridge. Discard syrup when it starts to turn cloudy.
To make salad:
- Mix together all the fruit in a large bowl and pour the syrup over the top, tossing gently.
- Garnish fruit with mint and edible violas or flowers if desired. (Use only edible flowers that are pesticide free).
Notes
- I used a combination of strawberries, blueberries and grapes in this salad, but you can use the fruit of your choice or whatever is in season.
- Keep a batch of orange-vanilla syrup in your fridge to add to fruit to serve over waffles, pancakes or for mixing a cocktail.
- Vanilla bean paste is a jarred product that can be found in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. It’s made from all the scraped-out specks found in vanilla bean pods. Vanilla bean paste is thicker and more gelatinous than vanilla extract, but it can be used almost interchangeably. It’s a great product because you get the specks that vanilla beans provide, but it’s easy to scoop out of the jar and it’s also more affordable than the beans themselves. The overall flavor in vanilla bean paste is slightly less intense than whole vanilla beans, but it still packs a powerful punch.