Fruit Macedonia with Vanilla Syrup
If you look in our fruit bowl or open the produce drawer in my refrigerator, you’ll find the same fruit week after week. We call them the basics: strawberries, kiwi, pears, apples and bananas. A typical fruit medley wouldn’t you say? Different combinations of these particular fruits either go in a morning smoothie, a lunch box or enjoyed rinsed, dried and straight into our mouths. But what if I told you that this fruit combination can become an elegant dessert just by adding a light tasting sweet vanilla syrup? A fruit Macedonia salad.
This salad goes way, way back with an interesting history. Macedonia is a colorful salad comprised of bite-sized pieces of fruit. Named after Alexander the Great’s diverse origin of the Macedonia Empire, this medley of sweet fruit is customarily served at the end of a meal as a dessert dish. Depending on the geographical region, time of the year and ingredient availability, a Macedonia fruit salad may contain a variety of different fresh seasonal fruit.
Go ahead, dig into your fruit bowl and create your own version of a fruit Macedonia salad. Give it a fall/winter theme with persimmons, pomegranates, plums, pomelos and quince and enjoy! Whatever fruit you decide to feature in this colorful and tasty dessert salad, it will be lovely closing to any family dinner.
Fruit Macedonia with Vanilla Syrup
- Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients
- 2 kiwis, peeled and chopped
- 1 Bosc pear, peeled and chopped
- 1 apple, peeled and chopped
- 2 bananas, peeled and sliced in rounds
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1 key lime, juiced
- mint leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Place fruit pieces in a large bowl and sprinkle with lime juice.
- Slice open vanilla bean lengthwise with a pairing knife.
- Combine water, sugar and vanilla bean in a medium saucepan. Boil over medium heat for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
- Discard vanilla bean from syrup. Pour syrup in fruit bowl, cover with lid or plastic wrap and cool in refrigerator for 2 hours.
- Distribute fruit and vanilla syrup equally into four serving bowls. Garnish with mint leaves.
