Fourth of July Healthy Dessert Recipe Idea: Grilled Tropical Fruit

On the Fourth of July, chances are you have the grill going anyway so why not cook this healthy dessert on the grill, too?

The heat of the grill brings out the natural sweetness in these tropical fruits. With some added spice and flavors, and a shot of rum, how can you go wrong? Make this healthy dessert recipe for any summertime picnic.

Ingredients for the Fourth of July Healthy Dessert Recipe Idea: Grilled Tropical Fruit

To serve eight guests:

one whole pineapple OR 2 baby pineapples
2 ripened mangoes
2 papayas
4 kiwi fruit
1/2 pound of plantains (or regular bananas)

Add or subtract as much fruit as you need.

Also,

2 tspns ground allspice
1/4 cup of lime juice
1/2 cup of firmly backed dark brown sugar (light brown sugar okay if you have it
1/2 cup of dark rum

Plus the ingredients for the serving dip:

1/4 cup vegetable spread like Brummel & Brown Spread or use butter, if you want a real treat
1 tbspn powdered sugar
1 tspn of grades lime rind
1 tspn honey

Nutritional Information*:

Calories per serving (approximate, assumes equal amounts of each fruit eaten by each person): 230
Total Fat: 6.3g
Saturated Fat: 1.0g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Total Carbohydrates: 46.3g
Dietary Fiber: 4.7g
Vitamin A 37%
Vitamin C 197%
Calcium 5%
Iron 4%

* From Calorie-Count.com

Preparation of the Fruit

After the main Fourth of July meal is cooked on the grill, cooked, cover half of the grill with aluminum foil and spray wiht non-stick spray.

Cut the pineapple in half length-wise, and then cut each of those halves in half. You could also use baby pineapple. Leave a little bit of the green leaves at the top. You do not have to cut off the peel

Take the mangoes and peel off the skin. Cut in half and remove the pit. Cut the mango into wedges.

Next, peel the papayas and cut in half, scooping out the seeds. Also cut the papaya in wedges. The wedges should a nice size to serve to a guest, so that it can be easily hand-held.

Peel the plaintains, or the regular bananas, if plantains were not available.

Place all of the fruits in a shallow dish

Mixing the Marinade for the Fourth of July Healthy Dessert Recipe Idea: Grilled Tropical Fruit

In a glass measuring cup, add the rum, the allspice, the lime juice. Stir with a spoon. Pour over the fruit.

Marinade the cut fruit for about 45 minutes.

Make the Honey-Lime Butter for a Dip

Mix the vegetable spread, brown sugar, lime juice and honey. Beat thoroughly and keep cold in the refrigerator.

Grilling the Grilled Tropical Fruit

This Fourth of July treat guests to your healthy tropical fruit dish. Grill the fruit on a heated grill. The soft fruits like kiwi and plantains should go on the foil.

Start the other fruits directly on the grill. The mango and papaya may need to be moved to the foil half way through cooking, depending on how hot the grill is, and how the fruit is holding up.

Take the fruit off when it has softened a bit and has some grilling marks. The pineapple make take longer than the rest of the fruits.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Your guests will delight in this tropical take on Fourth of July desserts.