Citric Acid Free Basil-Pesto Fruit Harvest Salad
Fresh fruit salads sound simple, but finding one that skips the processed acids and citric-acid-laden dressings hiding in store-bought options is harder than it looks. This one keeps things beautifully clean by building its dressing entirely from whole, recognizable ingredients — extra-virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, garlic, sea salt, and a whisper of ground ginger. The real star is the basil chiffonade, which infuses into the oil as the dressing rests, turning a handful of leaves into something that tastes genuinely herbaceous and complex. Poured over a generous mix of grapes, blueberries, strawberries, apple, and pear, it brings a savory-sweet balance that makes this feel like way more than a side dish. The torn mint at the end is optional, but it adds a bright, cooling finish that pulls everything together. It comes together in one bowl with no cooking required, making it as easy as it is impressive.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the basil-pesto dressing
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, tightly packed
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 small garlic clove, finely minced
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ⅛ tsp ground ginger
For the salad
- 2 cups seedless red grapes, halved
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
- 1 medium apple, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 medium pear, cored and thinly sliced
For serving
- 1 tbsp fresh mint leaves, torn (optional)
Instructions
- 1
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, fine sea salt, and ground ginger until fully combined and slightly emulsified.
- 2
Stack the basil leaves, roll them tightly lengthwise, and slice into thin ribbons (chiffonade). Add the basil to the dressing and stir to combine. Let the dressing sit for 10 minutes so the basil flavor infuses into the oil.
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