This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
This winter fruit salad is wonderfully refreshing and loaded with all the best fruits of Autumn and Winter. It is perfect for parties because the citrus prevents browning (crisp and pretty even after 4-6 hours in the refrigerator).
The “dressing” is lip-smacking good! It’s sweetened with honey so there is no processed sugar here. Everyone will love you for making this, especially now that we are all watching our waistlines in the new year! 😉
You’ll definitely get a healthy dose of fruit with this salad and you’ll be running for a refill! The combination of lemon, lime and honey makes the most amazing salad dressing and it draws out the naturally sweet and tangy flavors in each bite. You will want this syrup on all of your fruit salads!
Winter Fruit Salad Ingredients:
1 pound (5 count) Clementine oranges, peeled and separated into segments
2 pears, cored and sliced
2 apples, cored and sliced
1 large pomegranate, seeded (1 to 1 1/2 cups arils or seeds)**
4 kiwis, peeled and slicedj
**Watch How to Seed a Pomegranate
Lemon Lime Syrup:
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice, from 1 medium lime
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, from 1 medium lemon
On Substitutions: You can add banana if you like – it is an inexpensive way to bulk up the salad for a larger crowd. The color and flavor of mango would be a nice add-in here as well.
How to Make Winter Fruit Salad:
1. In a large mixing bowl combine all of the prepared fruit – 5 segmented clementines, 2 sliced pears, 2 sliced apples, pomegranate seeds, and 4 sliced kiwis.
2. In a measuring cup, stir together 3 Tbsp honey, 2 Tbsp lemon juice and 2 Tbsp lime juice, until honey is dissolved. If your citrus was cold and honey is not dissolving, warm it for 10 seconds in the microwave to dissolve easier.
3. Drizzle dressing over salad and toss gently to combine. Serve right away or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 6 hours.
My husband and I wolfed this down one evening after dinner. It was so satisfying and satisfied the craving for something sweet after dinner with zero guilt. Enjoy this my friends!
Winter Fruit Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Winter Fruit Salad Ingredients:
- 1 lb 5 count Clementine oranges, peeled and separated into segments
- 2 pears, cored and sliced
- 2 apples, cored and sliced
- 1 large pomegranate, to get 1 to 1 1/2 cups arils or seeds
- 4 kiwis, peeled and sliced
Lemon Lime Syrup:
- 3 Tbsp honey
- 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice, from 1 medium lime
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, from 1 medium lemon
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl combine all prepared fruit - 5 segmented clementines, 2 sliced pears, 2 sliced apples, pomegranate seeds, and 4 sliced kiwis.
- In a measuring cup, combine: 3 Tbsp honey, 2 Tbsp lemon juice and 2 Tbsp lime juice, until honey is dissolved. If honey is not dissolving easily, warm for 10 seconds in microwave.
- Drizzle dressing over salad and toss gently to combine. Serve right away or cover and refrigerate if not serving right away.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
I hope your New Year’s resolutions are off to a great start! Q: Do you have any health or diet goals for the New Year? Let me know in a comment below! I’m over here getting excited about bone broth like a big nerd (more on that soon!).
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
I made this except for the pomegranate arils. I know a lot of people wouldn’t like the seedy bits so I used drained maraschino cherries instead to make it festive for Christmas. Worked great. I do suggest if you make it ahead, to cut up everything and keep in separate containers just until you are leaving home or, if at home, just before serving. The fruits will release a good amount of juice making the salad a bit more liquid than I liked for appearances at the party. Doesn’t matter if just making for yourself at home 🙂
Hi Pam! Thank you for sharing that with us.
Thank you for this recipe. I was invited to my Russian neighbor’s dinner party and she asked that I bring “some fruit.” This salad is beautiful as well as delicious and was a big hit. I used agave instead of honey. But Natasha!! No WAY is this a 15 minute recipe. Just cutting up all the fruit and removing the pomegranate seeds took about an hour!
I’m so glad it was a big hit for your dinner party. If you haven’t tried this trick, we shared a clever way to seed a pomegranate here.
This looks yummy! Could I substitute canned mandarin oranges? I want to cut back in work on Christmas Day 😊
Thank you!
Hi Jenny. You can, but the texture is not quite the same (they fall apart) and they are sweeter so you may need to make some adjustments.
I brought this fruit dessert salad to a dinner party and received rave reviews. People were impressed by the beautiful presentation and liked the light lemon/lime syrup.
The recipe was a good size for a dessert for a party of twelve. It was one of three desserts presented ( the others were cake and a fruit crisp). There were leftovers and people eagerly took them home as the group appreciates healthful food.
Some of the syrup spilled in transport in a shopping bag in my car. I think the article photo shows a bowl, which might be a good choice for transporting. The fruit looked very pretty in my 10”x10” plate with raised edges, a good choice if I were making this to serve at home. Another possibility to avoid spills if you are transporting might be to prepare a similar 10”x10” plate, squeeze a little lemon juice onto the apples and pears to prevent discoloration. transport the plate, then pour the syrup once arrived at your destination. It all depends on what bowl or plate you have available.
I expect to make this recipe many times again.
Thank you for sharing that with us!
I have had this salad at multiple different occasions and loved it. Decided to make it for a Christmas party that I hosted this past week. It does not do well when you make it a day earlier. The juices let out and ended up being a bowl of fruit and juice which did not look appetizing. So if anyone wants to make this in advance like a day early, don’t because I didn’t have a good experience. I did find a way to still use the leftovers. Just put everything in a blender the fruit including the juice and some coconut water and my family drank it all up. 🙂 Granted there will be seeds from the pomegranate but that didn’t bother us. Happy it worked out in the end.
I wanted to make this for Thanksgiving but wondered if I could use something in replace of the honey. We have a vegan attending Thanksgiving and would like to accommodate her.
Hi Denise. I have not tested an alternative but I would think you could use agave, maple syrup, or something similar. Let us know how it turns out if you experiment.
Do you think it would work to add raspberries and blackberries?
Hi Janice, I bet that could work! fruit salads are pretty versatile!
Made this last year to take to family dinner for Thanksgiving. Everyone loved it and it is a beautiful dish on the table.
Happy to hear that, Ricka! Thanks for sharing that with us.
Hi Natasha,
What type of pears do you recommend for this salad?
Hi Gretchen! I’m sure any pear would be great. Bartletts seem to be the most common and easy to find.
Hi Natasha. This looks delicious. Can this be made a day ahead of serving it? I’d like to make it ahead of time and serve it to company in the morning.
Thanks!
Hi Alice! It is perfect for parties or making it ahead because the citrus prevents browning (crisp and pretty even after 4-6 hours in the refrigerator).