Easy Fruit Salad with Vanilla Pudding

Close overhead image of a bowl of the best fruit salad recipe served in a white handmade bowl

5 from 1 vote

Easy Fruit Salad with Vanilla Pudding

This easy fruit salad comes together in just minutes and is perfect for any occasion! The secret is fresh fruit and a sweet vanilla pudding dressing. Make this fruit salad as a breakfast, lunch, or dinner side, potluck dish, or for a sweet summer dessert.

Course Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword easy fruit salad, fresh fruit salad, fruit salad, fruit salad with vanilla pudding

Prep Time 15

Total Time 15

Servings people

Calories 100kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

Ingredients

8 cups chopped fresh fruit or berries (such as a combination of blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, and peaches)
Zest from 1 lime
2 tablespoons instant vanilla pudding mix
¼ cup lime juice

Instructions

In a large bowl, stir together fruit and lime zest.
In a small bowl, whisk together the pudding mix and lime juice until smooth and thick (the dressing will have a soft pudding-like consistency, but will thin as it sits in the bowl and mixes with the juices from the fruit). Pour over the fruit and toss to coat.
Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.

Notes

For a slightly sweeter, less-tart dressing, replace the lime juice with orange juice.
Lemon juice and lemon zest are also good substitutes for the lime juice and lime zest.
Almost any combination of fresh (or even canned) fruit will work here, so pick your favorites or use whatever is in season. Just make sure that the total amount comes to about 8 cups.
For a smaller family, cut all of the ingredients in half and only prepare 4 cups of salad.
Summer: focus on fresh berries (like strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries), as well as nectarines or peaches.
Winter: look for more easily-accessible year-round fruits, such as grapes, apples, pears and bananas. Kiwi, oranges, pineapple, and pomegranate seeds are also nice additions.
If using bananas in your salad, wait to add them just before serving. The bananas tend to brown faster than other fruit.
The acid and sugar in the dressing will macerate or break-down the fruit as it sits, so do not add the dressing more than about 1-2 hours before serving.
If using peaches, pears or apples, it's not necessary to peel them before adding them to the dish.
When zesting the lime, be careful that you do not include any of the bitter white pith. Just scrape off the thin outer layer of the peel, which contains all of the essential oils (and flavor!).
Garnish the salad with fresh lime, additional lime zest, fresh mint, or other fresh herbs like basil or thyme.

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