This fall fruit salad is filled with fresh apples, blackberries, grapes, and pecans. Drizzled with a homemade cinnamon orange dressing that packs tons of fall flavor!
Fruit salad isn't only for summer. Add this flavorful, sweet salad to your next Halloween, Thanksgiving, or fall party food table!
Made with cubed apples, red grapes, blackberries, and pecans, this fall fruit salad is easy to assemble in only a few minutes. The best part is the simple dressing that's made with orange juice, orange zest, maple syrup, and cinnamon. It adds tons of cozy fall flavor with a handful of ingredients!
Serve this fall fruit salad at your next fall party, for Halloween, or even for Thanksgiving. Have leftovers? It's the perfect accompaniment to a stack of applesauce pancakes!
Ingredients and substitutions
I used two large, sweet apples for this fruit salad. Honeycrisp, fuji, gala, and red delicious are all great choices.
Blackberries can be substituted with other berries you have on hand, like sliced strawberries, raspberries, or blueberries.
Red seedless grapes can be substituted with any color grapes you have on hand.
Chopped pecans can be substituted with walnuts.
Maple syrup can be substituted with honey (however, your salad will no longer be vegan).
What kinds of fruits can I use?
The most common fruits for a fall fruit salad include: apples, orange slices, kiwi, grapes, pears, pomegranate arils, blackberries, figs, and persimmons.
In short, any of these fruits you have on hand can be added to your fruit salad. Make it according to your tastes and preferences - make it something you'll truly enjoy!
Can fruit salad be made ahead?
This prepared fruit salad keeps well in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days, but is best served within a day of preparing.
Want to make your salad a day ahead of time? Prepare according to the directions below, cover, and store in the refrigerator overnight. Before serving, give your salad a quick toss to incorporate any dressing that may have settled at the bottom of the bowl.
How to keep fruit salad from turning brown
- Prepare your fruit salad as directed below, cubing your apples last. Once your apples are cubed, immediately assembly the salad.
- Once the dressing is added to your salad, this will coat and seal your fruit. The dressing prevents your apples from turning brown.
- Your fruit salad will keep, once dressed, in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
Fall Fruit Salad
Ingredients
- 16 ounces red seedless grapes
- 12 ounces blackberries
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 2 large sweet apples
Dressing
- 1 orange
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a bowl, add the zest and juice of one orange. Then, add maple syrup and cinnamon, whisking to combine. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add grapes, blackberries, and pecans. Cube apples into bite size pieces and add to the bowl. Immediately pour dressing over fruits and toss until evenly coated.
- Serve immediately or store covered in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- Salad can be prepared up to one day ahead and stored, covered, in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Give your salad a toss just before serving to incorporate any dressing that may have settled in the bottom of the bowl.
- Any apples can be used in this recipe - I recommend sweet apples like honeycrisp, fuji, or gala apples.
- Prepared fruit salad will keep for 3 to 4 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
- Juice of one orange = about ¼ cup
I’m allergic to Orange - what substitute can I use?
To prevent the apples from turning brown, they'll need to be coated in an acidic juice, so pineapple juice or lemon juice would work. Apple juice is also quite acidic and could be worth a try, although I haven't tested this one myself. As for the zest I'd recommend omitting it entirely (lemon or lime would be too tart).
Excellent salad. Had people asking me for the recipe. Nice to have a different kind of fruit salad.
Decided to branch out and try something new for Thanksgiving today. This was a hit. I 3x the recipe and came home with an empty bowl as any leftovers were swiped and taken home. Perfect the way its written but easily customizable! Thanks for the recipe!!