Fruit Salad with Orange-Vanilla Syrup & Homemade Whipped Cream

 I was watching an episode of the Pioneer Woman over the weekend, where she has her entire brood of friends and family over for a “Sunday Spring Brunch.” In the episode, she serves a glazed ham, biscuits and gravy, a potato dish and a fruit salad. I’m thinking yeah, everyone makes a glazed ham and coordinates their napkins with their floral centerpieces because it’s Sunday.

So what I took away from this (wink, wink, nudge, nudge Easter) episode was that I need to make more fruit salads. The Pioneer Woman’s recipe looked delightful, so I figured I could rework it with what I have in my refrigerator.  I also thought that if I added my recipe for simple, homemade whipped cream, this would feel like a real dessert, even without a slice of cake or ice cream.  I cut down the sugar and replaced the orange with cuties to be sure that it had a fresh, sweet taste. This recipe can also sit in your refrigerator overnight and be packed for a sweet treat at work or spooned over some French Toast.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

Simple Syrup:

½ Cup Sugar

½ Cup of Water
Zest and Juice of 3 Cuties

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Fruit I had on hand:

1 Pint of Strawberries - sliced
1 Bunch of Green Grapes – sliced in half

Fruit that can also be used:

Blueberries

Red Grapes

Whipped Cream:

½ Cup Heavy Cream

½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 ½ Teaspoons Confectioners' Sugar 

Directions:

Put the sugar, zest, water and juice into a small pot and bring it up to a boil. Reduce the heat all the way down to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn the heat off and place the pot on a cool burner, allowing it cool for at least 15-20 minutes before pouring over the fruit.

Wash, dry and cut up your fruit. Place the fruit in a medium-sized bowl and toss with the simple syrup. Place the bowl in the refrigerator. I like to let the fruit sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours, only taking it out to stir it a bit once or twice.

In a large, metal bowl, whip cream with hand or stand mixer on medium speed until it begins to look thick and a bit frothy. This will take about 45 seconds to a minute. Slowly pour in your vanilla and sugar until peaks form, which should only take another 15 seconds.

Spoon your fruit with a bit of syrup into individual bowls or over some angel food cake. Top with a dollop of the whipped cream.