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Home / Holidays and Events / 4th of July

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup

5
/5
20 minutes
9 Comments
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By: The Chunky Chefpublished: 04/30/2017

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This summer fruit salad is made with a blend of watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe, and tossed in an easy syrup made with mint and a hint of serrano!


Serve this refreshing summer fruit salad and be the star of any gathering!  Made with watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew, it’s incredibly refreshing… plus it’s tossed in a mouthwatering syrup made with mint and hints of serrano pepper.  The heat gives this fruit salad a uniquely delicious flavor!

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

It’s officially time to start enjoying all the great cookout/bbq foods, and it’s hard to beat a great summer fruit salad!  They’re so refreshing, so vibrant, and most of all, so easy to make!  If you can chop, you can make a fruit salad.  Traditionally a fruit salad has a multitude of types of fruits, like blueberries, strawberries, kiwi, grapes, etc (and I have plans to make one of those for you all and post it here this summer), but for this one… I chose to stick to the melon family.  Melons are sweet, with such beautiful colors, plus you can chop them in such fun ways.

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

For this particular summer fruit salad, I chose to use my trusty melon baller and make bite size, popable little balls of sweetness.  But you could absolutely slice the melons into about 1 inch thick slices, then take a mini cookie cutter and cut them into fun shapes (like stars for the 4th of July perhaps?).  Or you can keep things casual and simple with a classic cube shape 🙂

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

Some of you might be wondering if I’ve lost my ever-loving mind by adding a hot pepper to this summer fruit salad.  I know, I know… it sounds a little weird.  But trust me, you really don’t taste the pepper, since you just steep the serrano pepper in the syrup, then remove it before tossing the fruit with the syrup.  It’s more of a subtle kiss of heat that really sets off the sweetness of the fruit and the brightness of the honey/lime/mint in the simple syrup!

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

However, if you’re really worried about it, or don’t have one on hand and don’t want to make another trip to the store, you can leave the pepper out and still have a great tasting syrup!

Actually making this summer fruit salad doesn’t take very long at all, but you do need to let it chill out in the refrigerator for a couple of hours, so factor that in.  I like to make the salad up in the morning, then take it to the cookout/bbq later that afternoon.  Not only does it let the fruit get all nice and chilled (who wants warm fruit salad?), but the flavors really mesh together as it sits, so you’ll have a better tasting fruit salad if you let it chill.

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

I like to garnish my dish with a sprinkling of fresh mint and lime zest, but that’s totally optional.  I know some people don’t really care for leaves of fresh mint, no matter how finely you mince them 🙂

As you all start planning your Memorial Day/July 4th/Summer BBQ menus, I hope you give this summer fruit salad with serrano mint syrup a shot!  Don’t forget, if you try it, snap a photo, share it on Instagram and tag me @the_chunky_chef.  I LOVE seeing all your creations!!

Speaking of summer menus, here are a few of my other absolute favorite recipes!!

Tequila Lime Coleslaw
Sparkling Blueberry Lemonade
Cranberry Almond Broccoli Salad
Jalapeno Popper Macaroni Salad
Copycat Big Boy Strawberry Pie
Coffee Rubbed Burgers

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup

5 from 2 votes
Author: The Chunky Chef
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Calories: 96
Servings: 12 servings
(hover over # to adjust)
Print Rate Pin
This summer fruit salad is made with a blend of watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe, and tossed in an easy syrup made with mint and a hint of serrano!

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 1/4 cup lime juice
  • 3 Tbsp honey
  • 1/2 tsp serrano pepper, minced
  • 1/4 cup fresh mint, minced
  • 2 tsp lime zest
  • 4 cups EACH: cubed or balled honeydew, cantaloupe and watermelon
  • additional fresh mint and lime zest, for garnish

Instructions

  • To a small saucepan, add granulated sugar, water, lime juice, honey and serrano pepper.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat slightly and cook 4-5 minutes, until slightly thickened.
  • Remove from heat, add lime zest and minced fresh mint.  Let cool completely.
  • In a large bowl, add cubed or balled fruits.  Set aside.
  • Strain syrup through a fine mesh sieve.  Add syrup to fruit salad bowl and toss to coat.  Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours, stirring a couple of times.

Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!

Nutrition Disclaimer

The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.

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Summer Fruit Salad with Serrano Mint Syrup | A refreshing fruit salad made with a variety of summer fruits, tossed in an easy simple syrup made with mint and serrano pepper! | http://thechunkychef.com

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Hey there! I'm Amanda. Wife, mother, photography nerd, and bacon lover! I believe that delicious meals should be easy to make. Now that you’re here, stay a bit, browse a few recipes, and let’s get cookin’!

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Recipe Rating




  1. CAFFAHOLIC says

    Posted on 12/19 at 11:04 am

    Thanks a lot for sharing this…though its winter but i was so curious to try this out and i actually did…Turned out to be super delicious and appetizing

    Reply
  2. Laura @ Petite Allergy Treats says

    Posted on 5/2 at 9:50 pm

    Such gorgeous salad! This would be refreshing on a hot summer’s day!

    Reply
  3. katerina @ diethood.com says

    Posted on 5/2 at 6:34 am

    I love, love, love this salad!! AND that syrup, WOW!!

    Reply
  4. Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

    Posted on 5/1 at 10:03 pm

    What a gorgeous and vibrant salad, I’d love to dig into that whole bowl right now!

    Reply
  5. Dorothy at Shockingly Delicious says

    Posted on 5/1 at 7:43 pm

    What a gorgeous salad! I can’t wait to try the syrup!

    Reply
  6. Jen says

    Posted on 5/1 at 3:16 pm

    I don’t think you’re crazy at all for adding the serrano pepper….I think it’s genius! Love the flavors!!

    Reply
  7. Amy @ Little Dairy on the Prairie says

    Posted on 5/1 at 2:11 pm

    After a long winter I’m craving fresh fruit! The flavors in the is salad are so exciting! Cant’ wait to try it!

    Reply
  8. Des @ Life's Ambrosia says

    Posted on 5/1 at 2:07 pm

    This is so pretty! And that serrano and mint syrup sounds awesome!

    Reply
  9. Analida's Ethnic Spoon says

    Posted on 4/30 at 11:11 pm

    Fruit and mint is so refreshing, now with chili? Yes please. I was first introduced to the concept in Asia and have not been able to stop pairing the two together.

    Reply

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