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These quick make ahead Fruit Kabob Skewers are a fun way to show off your patriotic spirit! Red, White and Blue, this appetizer or healthy dessert is tasty!

 

 

Call me crazy but I’m all about a little Red, White, and Blue when it comes to Memorial Weekend or 4th of July events in the United States!  We always like to make sure our clothes are coordinated with the colors and of course eat a little red white and blue in celebration too!

When it comes to celebrating, we love to spend as much time outside as possible.  For Memorial Weekend, we like to go to a local bike parade.  The children get to decorate their bikes, grab a healthy snack, free book and a bike helmet.  They have the opportunity to meet with a police officer and a police dog as well as learn about bike safety!  We then go for a slow ride around a local lake and enjoy the beauty around us.  

Then for the fourth of July celebrations, the city always does a great job with fireworks displays and plenty of festivities before hand.  

Because we like to be outside as much as possible, it’s important to us that we can do as much food prep in advance as possible.  These 4th of July fruit kabobs are a perfect make ahead appetizer that could also turn into a healthy dessert too!  

 

 

We love to make mini bite sized skewers that stand beautifully on a platter.   Because the watermelon is cubed and on the bottom, these quick and easy fruit bites can stand on their own.  Thus making them a beautifully and simple fruit tray!

Another thing we love abut making mini kabobs vs. traditional length, is that you only need one hand to enjoy these, making them great finger foods!  No more mess plates or two hands needed.  Just grab one, pop it in your mouth and move on to the next tasty treasure!

These Fruit Skewers are also Vegan!  Which might sound silly but my parents are Vegan.  And for some reason every time they come my mind goes completely blank on what I could possibly make them to eat!  So I have to remind myself regularly how easy it is to cook for someone who is Vegan because this fruit kabob recipe is definitely vegan!

Though this recipe doesn’t seem like much of a recipe, the flavors of Watermelon, Pears and Blueberries tastes like a mini fruit salad in your mouth!  And best of all, the colors match!!  These fruit kabobs also freezer friendly!  Once you make them, you can freeze them for 4th of July fruit Popsicle!

 

 

IS IT A KABOB, KEBOB or KEBAB?

Talk about confusing!  Which one is it and what is the difference between the three?  Technically they all are referring to the same thing.  Cubes of meat and vegetables on a stick cooked over a fire or grill, usually marinaded.  

However the history of the name change has been difficult to piece together.  Originally (from what I can find) it started off as a Doner Kebab.  Large pieces of meat skewered onto a large stick that slowly spins. As it spins it is cooked by a fire and the end pieces are cut off into a pita.  Then it appears that someone took this idea and shrunk it into a Shish Kebab – meat on a skewer, cooked on a grill over over a fire.

However, as with all things in time, and all things that make there way over into America, we start to change names to things that work for us.  The theory is that when people said the term Kebab fast, it sounded like Kebob so people started to call it a Kebob.  Then, once again, things shifted and what was once a Kebob, turned into a Kabob.

Essentially all three are referring to the same thing.  However, the difference will be how old the person saying it is, and where they are originally from.  In the end, if your family really can’t decide on what to call these, battle it out with rock, paper or scissors.  That always work for us!  

 

 

HOW DO YOU KEEP FRUIT KABOBS FRESH?

There are two things you’ll need to do to have fresh fruit kabobs.  1) Any fruit that will oxidize, needs to be soaked in lemon juice or orange juice for a minute or two.  We prefer orange juice because then it’s not sour later.  This will help the fruit from turning brown.  Once you’ve allowed your fruit to sit in the citrus juice for a minute or two, then you can start to assemble the Patriotic Fruit Bites.   Depending on the strength of your citrus juice, will determine how long your fruit stays fresh looking.  2) Once prepared, put bites into the fridge until ready to serve.

DO I NEED TO SOAK SKEWERS FOR FRUIT KABOBS?

Nope!  Because you are not cooking the fruit skewers, you do not need to presoak the wooden sticks.  A long tooth pick will work great for this recipe!

CAN YOU PREPARE KABOBS THE NIGHT BEFORE?

Yes you can.  However if you are using a fruit that oxidizes, you’ll want to pretreat it with a citrus juice or wait until the day of to assemble.

 

 

WHAT FRUITS CAN I USE FOR RED, WHITE AND BLUE?

If you choose not to use watermelon, pears and blueberries, then try these fruits:

Red Fruit:

• Strawberries
• Raspberries
• Apples
• Cranberries
• Pomegranites
• Cherries
• Grapes
• Watermelon

White Fruit:

• Apples
• Asian Pears
• White Strawberries
• Bananas
• Lychee
• Pears

Blue Fruit:

• Blueberry
• Grapes
• Blackberry (close enough!)
• Boysenberry (close enough!)

 

 

WHAT ARE SOME OTHER FRUIT KABOB IDEAS?

Fruit Kabobs can be as colorful or createive as your imagination!  Some fun and unique fruit kabob ideas I’ve found are:  Firecracker Fruit Kabob, Rainbow Fruit Kabob, Flag Fruit Kabob, Grinch Fruit Kabobs and Caterpillar Fruit Kabobs.

You can’t honestly look at any of those and not want to whip up a cute and friendly batch of fruit kabobs for your kids!

As I said earlier, these quick and easy fruit kabobs are a fun way to show off your patriotic spirit for Memorial Weekend, 4th of July or even Labor Day!

 

Originally published: July 3, 2015

Republished: July 3, 2017

Photos & Text Updated: May 21, 2019

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