This stone fruit salad is juicy, sweet, and refreshing – aka it’s one you’ll want to serve at all your summer get-togethers. Just toss together five summer stone fruits with chopped mint leaves and a simple vanilla honey syrup for an ever sweeter bite. 

If you’re new to the term “stone fruits,” it’s basically fruits that hold very large seeds in the middle. Think plums, peaches, nectarines, mangoes, lychees, cherries, etc. And since most stone fruits are at their prime during the summer months, a stone fruit salad is quintessential of course. 

Think of my classic fruit salad as the expected fruit salad at parties and gatherings, and this stone fruit salad as the unexpected yet equally dazzling cousin with bigger slices of fruit and a sweet vanilla dressing.

Stone Fruit Salad Ingredients

On your next trip to the market, be on the lookout for in-season stone fruits taking center stage in the produce section. These are the ones that are most ripe, with the best texture and sweetness. I personally love a combination of peaches, white nectarines, and plums, but use any combination of stone fruits you prefer! 

• Peaches and Nectarines: Each of these varieties comes in yellow and white options. So I’ll usually grab yellow peaches and white nectarines just to switch up the colors. And if you want to jazz it up, use grilled peaches for a smoky aroma!
• Plums: Red plums are a personal favorite since they’re on the sweeter side. But again, go with the type of plums you love. 
• Grapes: Although this isn’t a stone fruit, I like to add red seedless grapes into the mix for a softer, juicier texture. They also give some dimension to the salad visually since they’re smaller in shape.  
• Mint Leaves: Fresh mint leaves are hands down one of the best herbs to complement fruit salads.
• Vanilla Honey Syrup: The syrup is a quick combo of honey, hot water and vanilla. If I was making a large batch of the syrup I’d use organic vanilla beans and infuse the simple syrup mixture overnight. But as this salad just calls for a small quantity of syrup, I default to making life easy with organic vanilla extract.

Find the printable recipe with measurements below.

How to Make The Best Stone Fruit Salad

I gotta say, fruit salads are the best for when you need to make a quick summer side dish or dessert (see my tip below!). Just slice the fruits, mix up the dressing, and toss everything together. 

Prep the stone fruits. Wash all the stone fruits and slice them around the pit. Remove the pits, slice each fruit into 8 pieces, and place in a large serving bowl. Remove the grapes from the stems and add to the bowl along with the chopped mint.

Make the dressing. In a small cup, mix the honey, hot water and vanilla extract. Stir until combined, then let cool.

Toss it all together. Drizzle the syrup on the fruit salad and toss everything together. Pro tip: Aside from being a salad or side dish, this makes for a delicious fruity dessert! You can serve this in little bowls for your guests with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream on top (my personal favorite).

Storage and Make-Ahead Tips

Luckily, you can make this fruit salad a few hours in advance. Just make sure to cover it up and store it in the fridge. You could also pre-slice the stone fruits a day in advance and store them in a container in the fridge. Then when you’re ready to serve, quickly make the dressing, chop some mint up, and toss it all together! 

For any leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days. If you notice that the fruit is softening a bit too much, you can also add any leftovers into a smoothie so they don’t go to waste!

More Summer Salads 

There’s nothing like a big bowl of salad as respite from the summertime heat. But instead of fruits, make the most of seasonal vegetables in these summer salads. They’re sure to please for an easy dinner addition. 

• Easy Cucumber Salad (or this Cucumber Radish Salad)
• Caprese Salad (or this Avocado Caprese Salad for a Cali twist!)
• Greek Salad
• Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
• Broccoli Salad (a holiday favorite!)

Recipe originally published August 2015, but updated with new photos and information.