I’m sure you already do put fruits in your salads, maybe without realizing it. Remember your last one with tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers? All of those traditional salad “vegetables” are technically fruit!

In Webster’s dictionary, the botanical definition of fruit includes peas, nuts, tomatoes, pineapples, and the edible part of a flowering plant such as peach, mulberry, bananas, etc. Those are the only ones mentioned, but you get the idea. It would seem that the list of fruits contains all sorts of edibles from apples to zucchini. Wow! That’s quite a range!

But when I’m talking about adding a little “zing” to a salad, I’m talking about tossing in fruits such as apples, pears, oranges, pineapple or grapes to put serendipity into an otherwise mundane salad. Nuts are also fun to add to give real crunch; did you know most nuts, too, are fruits? Try tossing slivered almonds or chopped walnuts into almost any salad to make it more add interesting. In addition, the nutritionists and dietitians are recommending a diet lush with fruits and vegetables, at least 5 servings a day. So adding non-traditional stuff can turn an ordinary salad into a nutritional powerhouse.

So rethink your spring salads. Here are some of my favorite recipes to give you a start. Garnish any of these salads with small bunches of fresh grapes for extra flavor and eye appeal.

Carrot Salad with Grapes and Ginger

1 pound baby carrots, halved lengthwise

4 ounces green grapes, halved

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon Dijon or Creole mustard

3 tablespoons vinegar

1 tablespoon minced crystallized ginger

Salt to taste

Salad greens

Additional minced crystallized ginger for garnish

Cook the carrot halves in 1/4 cup water until crisp-tender. Drain. Transfer to a bowl. Mix together the oil, honey, mustard, vinegar, ginger, and salt. Pour over carrots in bowl. Toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Fold in grape halves.

Line a salad bowl or individual bowls or plates with salad greens. Spoon carrots and grapes on lettuce. Garnish with additional minced crystallized ginger. Makes 6 servings.

Pea and Bean Salad with Spinach and Raspberries

1/4 pound snow peas

1/4 pound frozen lima beans, thawed

3 cups loosely packed baby spinach

1/2 cup fresh raspberries

3 teaspoons wine vinegar

5 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cut stems from snow peas and wash. Cook peas and limas separately in water until tender-crisp. Drain and cool in refrigerator until ready to use.

Mix together the vinegar and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Just before serving, gently toss snow peas, beans, and raspberries with the spinach. Drizzle with dressing just before serving, and toss again.

Makes 6 servings.

Cole Slaw with Pineapple

Use pineapple chunks for a contrast in texture

1/2 large head cabbage, shredded

1 can pineapple chunks, drained, or 1 fresh pineapple, pared cored, and cut into chunks

1 cup dairy sour cream

2 tablespoons vinegar

2 tablespoons juice from pineapple

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Toss together the cabbage and pineapple chunks.

Cream the sour cream with the vinegar and pineapple juice. Stir in the sugar and salt. Spoon onto cabbage mixture; toss. Serves 8.

Spinach Salad with Oranges and Bacon

8 slices bacon

1 1/2 quarts loosely packed spinach leaves

1 large or 2 small cans Mandarin orange sections, drained (save syrup) OR 3 naval oranges

1 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil, OR 3 tablespoons oil and 1 tablespoon bacon drippings

1/2 cup syrup from oranges or orange juice

1/4 cup honey

2 tablespoons prepared Dijon-style mustard

Sauté bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spatula and drain on paper towels. Reserve 1 tablespoon bacon fat, if desired (for a stronger bacon flavor). Crumble bacon. Wash spinach and tear into bite-sized pieces or use baby spinach leaves.

Combine vinegar, oil, bacon drippings (if used), syrup, honey and mustard in a jar with a tightly fitting lid. Shake thoroughly. Store in refrigerator until ready to use; shake before using.

Gently toss spinach with dressing. Add mandarin orange sections, and toss again. Top with crumbles bacon and toss lightly. Serves 6.

NOTE: To use fresh oranges, peel. Scrape off as much as the white pith as possible. Holding the orange over a bowl, use a sharp knife to separate the membrane from the sections. Flip the sections into the bowl and halve. Make up any difference in required juice, use regular orange juice.

Caesar Salad with Grapes

This has a cooked egg dressing

1 cup water

2 eggs

1/2 cup vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

Salt to taste

4 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup sugar

Additional vinegar and water, if required

1 head bib lettuce

1/2 head iceberg lettuce

1 cup seasoned croutons

1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

1/2 halved green grapes

Make dressing in advance so it has time to cool before using. Combine the water, eggs, vinegar, mustard, salt, cornstarch and sugar in blender container. Blend on High until thoroughly combined. Pour mixture into a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until thickened.

If dressing is too thick, thin to desired consistency with equal parts vinegar and water. For sweeter dressing, add sugar, a teaspoon at a time, tasting after each addition until of preferred sweetness. Cool and refrigerate until ready to use.

Combine lettuce, croutons, blue cheese, and grapes and toss with dressing just before serving. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Mammy’s Main-Dish Chicken Salad

Just add crispy French bread

8 chicken breasts, boiled and deboned

1 cup finely chopped celery

1 can sliced water chestnuts, slivered

1 small can crushed pineapple, drained

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Hellmann’s Mayonnaise to mix

Coarsely chop chicken breasts. Add all other ingredients, mixing with just enough mayonnaise to moisten and hold together. Serve on a platter of greens.

Makes 8 to 10 main dish servings.