Easy Ways to Eat More Fruit
Use these simple tricks to increase your fruit intake and decrease the amount of added sugar in your breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks.
Adding fruit to a meal or snack is a great way to increase the amount of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients you consume while adding color and fiber to help keep you full.
Fruit can also be used to add natural sweetness to food and reduce or replace other processed ingredients that contain added sugar.
Below are some simple ways to add fruit to your day while also possibly reducing the amount of added sugar you consume.
Cereal
Add fresh fruit to dry cereal:
Banana
Blueberries
Strawberries
Etc.
Add fresh or unsweetened frozen fruit to hot cereal:
Blueberries
Mango
Peaches
Strawberries
Etc.
Let frozen fruit defrost overnight or set it out in a bowl before preparing your hot cereal. Then just spoon the hot cereal over it!
Pancakes and waffles
Top pancakes/waffles with fresh fruit instead of syrup:
Banana
Blueberries
Raspberries
Strawberries
Etc.
You could also add small pieces of fresh fruit to a bowl of pancake batter or to the top of each pancake once it’s on the griddle.
Desserts and candy
Replace ice cream with a homemade frozen fruit blend. Blend a splash of unsweetened milk or milk alternative with the frozen fruit of your choice:
Banana
Mango
Pineapple
Strawberries
Etc.
Suck on a piece of fresh or frozen fruit instead of hard candy:
Mango chunk
Strawberry
Etc.
Freeze your own grapes or buy frozen (pitted) cherries to enjoy or to help satisfy an ice cream or frozen dessert craving!
Serve baked or sautéed fruit slices with cinnamon for dessert:
Apple
Pear
Etc.
Jelly or jam
Replace jelly or jam with fresh fruit slices:
Banana
Strawberries
Etc.
Juice or fruit beverages
Eat a piece of fresh fruit instead of drinking juice or other processed fruit beverages. For example:
Eat an orange instead of orange juice.
Enjoy an apple instead of apple juice.
Eat a handful of grapes instead of grape juice.
Etc.
A 12-ounce fruit drink can contain as much as 59 grams (14 teaspoons!) of added sugar. In comparison, a handful of grapes or piece of fresh fruit contains 0 grams of added sugar. Fruit contains only naturally occurring sugar (not added sugar) and also contains fiber to slow the absorption of it.
Make your own fruit-infused water! Let fruit soak in water to add flavor, and then eat the fruit once you’re done drinking the water. Add:
Orange slices
Strawberries
Seedless watermelon balls (or small chunks)
Etc.
You can also add herbs like basil and mint to your water. Experiment with different flavor combinations until you find one you like!
Salad
Add fruit to a salad for a hint of sweetness:
Apple slices
Blueberries
Grapes
Pear slices
Strawberries
Etc.
Smoothies
Make your own smoothie or smoothie bowl instead of buying one from a store or café. This will ensure you’re eating real fruit and will also help you avoid common sugary additives:
Flavored syrup
Fruit juice
Fruit sorbet
Frozen yogurt
Sweetened milk or milk alternative
Etc.
Make a smoothie at home with your favorite unsweetened frozen fruit, unsweetened liquid, and other healthy ingredients of your choice.
Snacks
Add a piece of fresh fruit or small handful of unsweetened dried fruit to a snack:
Apple
Banana
Dried apricots
Pear
Raisins
Etc.
Ideally, the only ingredient listed on a package of dried fruit is the fruit itself. If it contains added sugar, you’re better off eating a piece of fresh fruit.
Replace snack bars with fresh fruit and an unsweetened nut or seed butter:
Banana slices with sunflower seed butter
Apple slices dipped in peanut butter
Pear slices and almond butter
Etc.
Stir fry
Add fresh citrus to a stir fry instead of adding a sauce that contains sugar:
Pineapple chunks
Orange slices
Etc.
Yogurt or cottage cheese
Add fresh fruit to a bowl of yogurt or cottage cheese:
Blueberries
Peaches
Strawberries
Etc.
Buy plain yogurt and add fresh fruit toppings for sweetness instead of buying yogurt sweetened with sugar, fruit syrup, or flavorings.
Hopefully these ideas were helpful and got you thinking about ways you could add fruit to your day while also potentially reducing the amount of added sugar you consume.
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Make one small change at a time and make it as easy as possible so you’re more likely to do it!
Source of sugar content in a 12-ounce fruit drink: U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9th Edition. December 2020.