Honey-Mint Macerated Fruit with Vanilla Crème Fraîche

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A fruit salad treated like an actual dessert. Honey is simmered into a light syrup, then steeped off the heat with a big handful of mint so it tastes green and cooling instead of grassy and bitter. The firmest fruit goes in first to macerate, the delicate berries last, and a pinch of salt plus fresh lime makes everything taste more like itself. Served cold over cool vanilla-scented crème fraîche with toasted pistachios for crunch.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup honey, preferably a mild wildflower or clover
• 1/3 cup water
• 3 strips lime zest, removed with a peeler
• 1 pinch fine sea salt
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves and tender stems (about 1 large bunch)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

• 3 cups cubed ripe cantaloupe or honeydew melon (1-inch cubes)
• 2 cups seedless red grapes, halved
• 2 medium navel or Cara Cara oranges
• 1 cup pineapple, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 cups strawberries, hulled and quartered
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 cup raspberries or blackberries
• 1/4 cup small fresh mint leaves, for finishing

• 1 cup crème fraîche (or full-fat Greek yogurt)
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
• 1 pinch fine sea salt

• 1/3 cup shelled unsalted pistachios
• Flaky sea salt, for finishing (optional)

Instructions

1. Make the syrup: combine the honey, water, lime zest strips, and a pinch of fine sea salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the honey dissolves, and let it bubble gently for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
2. Add the 1 cup of mint leaves and stems to the hot syrup, pressing them under the surface with a spoon. Steep exactly 15 minutes — no longer, or the mint turns bitter and hay-like. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing lightly on the mint to release the syrup, then discard the solids and zest. Stir in the lime juice and refrigerate until cool, about 20 minutes (or set the bowl in an ice bath for 5 minutes).
3. Toast the pistachios in a dry skillet over medium heat, tossing often, until fragrant and one shade darker, 3 to 4 minutes. Tip onto a plate to cool, then roughly chop.
4. Supreme the oranges: slice off the top and bottom, stand each fruit on a cutting board, and cut away the peel and white pith in strips following the curve of the fruit. Working over a bowl to catch juice, cut each segment free from the membranes. Add the segments and any juice to a large bowl.
5. Add the melon, grapes, and pineapple to the oranges. Pour over about three-quarters of the chilled honey-mint syrup, toss gently, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour. These sturdier fruits need the head start to soak up the syrup and release their own juices.
6. Make the cream: whisk the crème fraîche, heavy cream, 2 tablespoons honey, vanilla, and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl until smooth and thick enough to fall from the whisk in a soft ribbon, about 30 seconds. Do not overwhisk crème fraîche or it will turn grainy. Cover and chill until serving.
7. Just before serving, fold the strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries into the macerated fruit along with the remaining syrup. Toss gently with a rubber spatula so the berries stay intact. Taste — if the fruit is very sweet, add another squeeze of lime; if it tastes flat, add a small pinch of fine salt.
8. Spoon a generous swoosh of the vanilla crème fraîche into the bottom of 6 shallow bowls or wide glasses. Pile the fruit on top and spoon over some of the syrup pooled in the bowl. Finish with the toasted pistachios, small mint leaves, and a few flakes of sea salt if you like. Serve cold, right away.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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