Mixed Berry Salad with Honey Lime Poppyseed Dressing

If you’re looking for the most refreshing summer salad to add to any meal, then you have to try my quick-and-easy Mixed Berry Salad with Honey Lime Poppyseed Dressing. This sweet, fruit-based salad comes together with a base of fresh cut watermelon, cherries, strawberries, and blueberries, which are all topped off with a sweet and tangy honey lime poppyseed dressing that couldn’t be more delicious. This salad is perfect as a healthy dessert, a fun side dish, or even as a simple and easy snack! No matter how you choose to prepare it, you can’t go wrong. This salad is practically foolproof!

Friends, in my opinion, one of the most underrated summertime dishes is fruit salad. There’s something about a fruit salad that is so simple, yet so perfect. If you haven’t had a true fruit salad before, let me be the first to assure you that it’s much more than just a simple bowl of fruit. In fact, a fruit salad should start with fruit (and we’ll talk more about what kind of fruit later) which is then tossed in a super simple dressing. For this recipe, we’re using a honey lime poppyseed dressing that just comes together with three simple ingredients — you guessed it: honey, lime juice, and poppyseeds. The key here is just to make sure to use a more liquidy honey. If you honey is more on the solid side, you can simply pop it into the microwave for 5 seconds, until it reaches your desired consistency. It’s that easy!

Now, let’s talk about the fruit. The key to a good fruit salad is to use fresh fruit that is as ripe as possible. This salad calls for a combination of watermelon, cherries, raspberries, and blueberries, which is the perfect mix of flavors, if you ask me. The subtle sweetness of the watermelon, paired with the tartness of the cherries, and the burst of sweet from the raspberries and blueberries, comes together so well. Truly, don’t skip any of the fruits! Plus, with the dressing poured on top, it makes for the ultimate combination.

I like to serve this Mixed Berry Salad as a surprising side dish alongside some of my favorite summer recipes, such as my Bacon Chicken Ranch Skewers or my Micro Chop Caesar Salad. It’s such a fun way to shake up the traditional side salad! However, this fruit-based salad also works well as a healthy dessert or even as a fun snack. No matter how you choose to enjoy it, you truly cannot go wrong!

Oh, and YES — this salad can be prepared ahead of time. Simply prepare the salad and dressing separately, and store them in airtight containers, in the fridge. Then, once you’re ready to serve it, simply pour the dressing over the fruit. Toss to fully combine, garnish with your lime wedges, then you’ll have the perfect fruit salad ready in seconds!

What You Need to Make the Ultimate Summer Fruit Salad

One of the best parts about this fruit salad? It comes together with just a few simple ingredients! It’s perfect for whipping up quickly when you need an easy side dish in a pinch, or when you’re craving a refreshing summertime snack.

• Watermelon: The first ingredient in this fruit salad is none other than one of my favorite summer fruits — watermelon! I recommend using seedless watermelon so that this salad is super easy to eat. Just be sure to cut it into cubes!
• Cherries: Cherries are high in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, making them the perfect, healthy addition to this fruit salad.
• Strawberries & Blueberries: Of course, it wouldn’t be a mixed berry salad without the berries! The combination of strawberries and blueberries makes for the perfect addition to this salad.
• Honey: The base of this dressing comes together with honey, which is the perfect addition to any fruit salad recipe. Your honey should be more on the liquid side — if it isn’t and it’s more solid, you can simply pop it in the microwave for 5 seconds, until it reaches a more runny consistency.
• Lime: A squeeze of fresh lime juice adds the perfect amount of acidity to the dressing. Plus, some extra lime wedges for garnishing make for the perfect finishing touch.
• Poppyseeds: Of course, this wouldn’t be a Honey Lime Poppyseed dressing without the poppyseeds! They may be small, but I love the flavor that the poppyseeds add to this dressing.

How to Make This Light & Refreshing Mixed Berry Salad

To make this salad, start by preparing the fruit. Cube the watermelon and add it to a large bowl. Next, wash the cherries, strawberries, and blueberries. I recommend using this method to ensure that they’re perfectly clean! Then, pit the cherries, quarter the strawberries, and add them (alongside the blueberries) to the bowl with the watermelon.

Set the bowl of fruit aside and prepare the dressing. Add the lime juice, honey, and poppy seeds to a large measuring cup and whisk to combine. Note that if the honey is hard, you can microwave it for five seconds to soften it.

Once the dressing is done, pour it on top of the fruit salad. Toss the salad to fully coat the fruit in the dressing. Garnish with a few lime wedges, then serve and enjoy!

If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a review and rating below! To see more recipes and behind the scenes, follow along on Instagram, TikTok, and Youtube! I’m also now on Pinterest, so stop by and take a look at what’s new.

** Photography by Tanya Pilgrim