Boozy Ginger-Lemon Fruit Salad

Apples, pears, and strawberries come together in this boozy fruit salad. With the help of ginger and lemon it’s the perfect addition to your summer cookouts. 

Welcome to day one of #HotSummerEats, where myself and 17 other bloggers will be sharing recipes from June 1st through June 8th that are perfect for summer cookouts, bonfires, cocktail hours and grills. So make sure to see this guide to gas grills if you plan on getting a new one soon. Not only will you find over a hundred summery recipe posts, but you can enter to win our awesome giveaway, courtesy of some amazingly generous donations from sponsoring companies. Use the Rafflecopter widget at the end of this post to enter and for more details CLICK HERE.

Summer is finally upon us which means it’s time to bask in the glory that is all the summer fruit! Granted the recipe I am sharing today is not entirely summer fruit based but it does contain strawberries and that’s one of my favorites. I need to hunt down a good U-pick farm (and find the time to actually go) so that I can go strawberry picking, which typically results in eating as much as I pick. In the meantime I will have to settle for what I can get at the store, getting strange looks from other customers as I literally sniff out the best containers. Seriously, don’t buy them based on their color, pick it up and sniff it!

But enough about my unusual grocery shopping tactics. This fruit salad is a bit different from those you may have made in the past because it incorporates to unsuspecting guests: vodka and ginger. After extracting the juice from a lemon using my handy Casabella juicer and reamer, I added it to a vodka-simple syrup mixture along with some ginger. This ginger-lemon simple syrup is then poured over the fruit and allowed to chill in the fridge before serving. I served mine with a dollop of marshmallow creme but whipped cream or nothing at all is also perfect.

Three years ago: Baked Blueberry French Toast with Streusel Topping

Four years ago: Chick’amole Salad Sandwich

GINGER-LEMON VODKA SYRUP

Serves 8

Ingredients:

GINGER-LEMON SIMPLE SYRUP

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup vodka (or more water for non-alcoholic)

1 cup sugar

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)

1 Tbsp Gourmet Garden ginger paste

FRUIT SALAD

16 oz. (1 lb.) strawberries, hulled and chopped

2 green or yellow apples, cored and chopped

2 pears, cored and chopped

Whipped cream or marshmallow cream for serving (optional)

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the water, vodka, and sugar. Bring to a boil while stirring, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the syrup from the heat, add lemon juice and ginger, and let cool completely.
2. In a large bowl, combine the strawberries, apple and pear. Pour half of cooled syrup over the fruit and stir well. Add more to taste. Chill in refrigerator.
3. To serve, spoon into bowls then place a dollop of cream on top, if desired.

Source: Inspired by How Sweet It Is with the help of my friend Haley.

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Disclaimer – Thank you to #HotSummerEats sponsors BenBella Vegan, Caribeque, Casabella, Gourmet Garden, Intensity Academy, Not Ketchup, Out of the Weeds. Pirate Jonny’s, Quirk Books, Spicely Organics, T.Lish , and Voodoo Cheffor providing the prizes free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for#HotSummerEats without additional compensation.All opinions are my own.

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