You already know when to roast vs. broil vegetables for the best results, but have you ever considered the delightful possibilities of oven-roasted fruit? There are a number of fruits you need to be roasting to fully understand the delicious combination of a crisp caramelized outside and jammy texture inside. The biggest key to achieving perfectly roasted fruit comes down to uniformity in sizing. Whether you’re roasting large or small fruits, you should take care that each one is consistently sized to the rest of the batch. This also means you should roast each type of fruit separately to ensure proper timing and avoid over or undercooking.
After all your fruits have roasted and adequately cooled, you can mix everything together. With so many different fruits to choose from, you can create different batches depending on the season. Because different fruits have different textures and densities, each one will have a different cook time. This is why the consistency among your fruit pieces is so vital to the roasting process. Once you’ve gotten the cooking times down, it’s just a matter of preparing each piece to take on the level of heat and timing.
The best ways to enjoy roasted fruit
For ideal results, you’ll need a group of fruits with complementary flavors cut into uniform pieces, a small amount of your preferred type of sweetener, and a pinch of salt. You can also add optional flavors or seasonings like citrus zest, fresh herbs, or ground spices. Roast each type of fruit in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, checking the doneness around the 20 minute mark and keeping an eye thereafter so that your fruit doesn’t burn. Turn on your broiler for the last minute or two of cooking to give the fruit more of a char before removing from the oven.
Once your roasted fruits have stopped cooking and cooled, you can combine them into a roasted fruit salad and dress it with a drizzle of honey or yogurt sauce. The fruit would also make a great pop of sweetness when added to savory salads like roasted peaches with burrata and prosciutto or roasted strawberries with spinach and balsamic vinegar. If you’ve prepared your fruits on kabob skewers, you can also serve these as handheld appetizers at a gathering. Dress a bowl of cottage cheese with roasted fruit and granola for a nutritious and delicious combination.
