Grandé Fruit Bowl is cool, light, refreshing and healthy for these hot summer days. It makes use of the abundance of fresh fruit, and is a perfect appetizer, salad, dessert, or snack for any occasion. For the extra special adult occasions, I infuse the fruit with a mixture of dry white wine and Grand Marnier. It produces a hint of an extraordinary flavor in the fruit. However, that’s totally optional.
Looking for another amazing use for watermelon? You should hop on over to my Southern Watermelon Granita. You won’t be disappointed!
Ingredients for Grandé Fruit Bowl:
One of the nice things about this incredible dish is that you can really use whatever combination of fruit you desire. For this Grandé Fruit Bowl, I used seedless watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew melon, fresh pineapple, and white seedless grapes. In the past, I’ve also used fresh strawberries, blueberries, and mandarin oranges. For this adult version, I used a dry Chardonnay, Grand Marnier, and a bit of granulated sugar. As previously indicated, this is optional.
Preparing the Fruit for the Grandé Fruit Bowl:
I used the smaller end of a melon baller to scoop balls of watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew melon. This takes time, but it produces perfect bite-sized pieces of fruit. I cut the pineapple into 1/2-inch chunks, and left the grapes whole.
Putting the Grandé Fruit Bowl Together:
Once all of the fruit had been prepared, I mixed together the white wine, Grand Marnier, and sugar. I wanted to ensure that the sugar was dissolved, so I heated the mixture in the microwave for about 30 second, and stirred it well.
When the wine mixture was ready, I transferred all of the fruit to a gallon ziploc bag. Then, I poured the wine mixture over the fruit. I sealed the ziploc bag, and put it in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
Serving the Grandé Fruit Bowl:
One way to serve the Grandé Fruit Bowl is to use the scooped out watermelon as a bowl. When I do this, I cut 2-inch triangles around the perimeter of the top of the melon.
When I don’t want to bother using the scooped out melon, I serve the Grandé Fruit Bowl in a trifle bowl or other clear bowl. However I serve the Grandé Fruit Bowl, it’s always a crowd pleaser. Yum!
Grandé Fruit Bowl
Ingredients
- 4 cups watermelon balls (See Note 1)
- 2 cups cantaloupe balls
- 2 cups honeydew melon balls
- 2 cups fresh pineapple, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
- 2 cups white seedless grapes
- 1/2 cup dry white wine (optional) (See Note 2)
- 1/2 cup Grand Marnier (optional) (See Note 2)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar (optional) (See Note 2)
Instructions
- Combine all fruit in a gallon ziploc bag.
- Stir together the wine, Grand Marnier, and sugar. Microwave for 30 seconds, or until sugar is dissolved.
- Pour wine mixture into ziploc bag. Seal ziploc bag, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
- Serve in scooped out watermelon bowl, or clear bowl.
- Yield: 12 servings.
Chula's Expert Tips
- It is preferable to use seedless watermelon.
- You can use another type or orange liqueur such as Cointreau in place of the Grand Marnier. Alternatively, you can omit the wine, Grand Marnier and sugar.
- In addition to the fruit used here, you can use a lot of different combinations such as strawberries, blueberries, or mandarin oranges.
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