Apple Cranberry Fall Fruit Salad
This Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad recipe is the perfect fall dessert. Apples, craisins and pecans pair up to create this delicious creamy fall fruit salad recipe. The salad is tossed in a simple cream cheese and yogurt dressing.
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When I think about fresh fruit salad, I usually think about a fruit salad filled with my favorite summer fruits like watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew. Now that fall is here, it’s time to focus on one of the most popular fruits ever…..apples. This Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad is a delicious fall recipe that your family will love.
Apple season is in full swing here on the farm and I can’t get enough of them. I love this time of year. They are in full bounty this year. Apples are definitely one of my favorite fruits.
This yummy fruit salad is filled with sweet apples (I like to mix varieties for a more depth of flavor). Serving apples in a fruit salad can be tricky because they turn brown. For best results, soak them in some lemon water, preserves their color.
This delicious fruit salad is tossed with a simple dressing made with light cream cheese, brown sugar and vanilla Greek yogurt.
Ingredients To Make Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad
- Apples (sweet or tart, your choice!)
- Neufchatel cheese, softened
- Vanilla yogurt
- Brown sugar
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla extract
- Chopped pecans
- Craisins (dried cranberries)
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
Apples and cranberries, or in this case Craisins, are the perfect pairAdd some chopped pecans into the mix and you have hit a home run. The light creamy dressing is seasoned with a generous amount of cinnamon, giving this recipe so many tasty fall flavors.
What Kind of Apples Should I Use?
Here are some apple varieties that are perfect for this fall recipe. I like to mix the varieties of apples to add more depth of flavor to the recipe.
Any variety or combination of apples listed below great for this recipe. Be sure to grab some at your local farmers’ market, grocery store, or better yet, take the family to pick apples. Any of these are great choices for this easy side dish.
I prefer sweet apples in this recipe, but if you like a tart apple, then definitely substitute. A mixture of red apples and green apples makes this fruit salad really colorful.
- Stayman Winesap (tart)
- Granny Smith Apples (tart)
- Gala (sweet)
- Honeycrisp (slightly sweet)
- Cameo (slightly sweet)
- Rome (slightly sweet)
- Jonagold (slightly tart)
- Fuji Apples (sweet)
- Braeburn (slightly tart)
- Red Delicious (sweet)
- Yellow Delicious (sweet)
Kitchen Essentials Needed To Make This Recipe
- Large Bowl
- Small Bowl
- Serving Bowl
- Spatula or Wooden Spoon
How To Make An Autumn Fruit Salad
This Apple Cranberry Salad packs the perfect crunchy punch. I love pecans but you can use any nut you like. Walnuts or almonds would be excellent in this as well. This salad should be eaten soon after you mix all the ingredients together. Even though the apples are soaked in lemon water, they may oxidize and turn brown.
This recipe is best served immediately. It should be refrigerated if you plan on serving later. Store the salad in an airtight container.
This is the perfect recipe to serve at a fall celebration or as a yummy snack for the family. This creamy fruit salad is good stuff!
What Other Seasonal Fruit Can I Add or Substitute In This Easy Fruit Salad Recipe?
Try adding or substituting the following:
- Red Grapes or Green Grapes (make sure they are seedless grapes)
- Pomegranate Seeds
- Walnuts
- Almonds
- Ripe Pears
- Clementine Oranges
- Mandarin Oranges
Try These Delicious Apple Recipes
- Baked Apple Cider Donuts
- Salted Caramel Apple Cake
- Apple Cranberry Tarts
- Apple Raisin Coleslaw
- Homemade Caramel Apples
Save This Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad recipe for later. Pin the best fruit salad image below to your favorite Pinterest board.
Apple Cranberry Fall Fruit Salad
This Apple Cranberry Fruit Salad recipe is the perfect fall dessert. Apples, craisins and pecans pair up to create this delicious creamy fall fruit salad recipe. The salad is tossed in a simple cream cheese and yogurt dressing.
Ingredients
- 6 apples, diced
- 1 package Neufchatel cheese, softened
- 8 ounces vanilla low-fat Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 3/4 cup Craisins (dried cranberries)
- 3 cups cold water to soak apples
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
To Make the Creamy Dressing
- In a small bowl, add the cream cheese, yogurt, brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla together. Beat with hand mixer until creamy.
To Make Salad
- Add water and lemon to a medium bowl. Chop apples into cubes. Add to lemon water and soak for 2 minutes. Drain.
- Add soaked apples to a large bowl. Add chopped pecans and Craisins. Pour dressing on top. Mix well with a spatula or wooded spoon,
- For best results, refrigerate or serve immediately.
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