Over the holidays, Victor and I had a wonderful opportunity to experience first hand the majestic beauty of Yosemite National Park. From the snow covered roads (yes, there was someone to help us with our chains!) to the glory of Half Dome's snow cap, nature's display of scenery was breathtaking. Inspired by this beauty, here are a couple of fruit salad recipes for a natural winter fruit salad.

Even in winter, fruits can be fun and delicious. Here are two options for easy-to-make winter fruit salad. One recipe is from Martha Stewart and the other recipe is from EatingWell.com. Both fruit salad recipes call for ingredients that are easy to find and both salads take little time to make.

Winter Fruit Salad

1 Pink Papaya
1 Yellow Papaya
1 Pint of Fresh Strawberries
1 Lime Halved Fresh Mint for Garnish

Remove the skin and seeds of the papayas and cut them in quarters or vary the look of the salad by cutting one papaya in 1-inch chunks and the other in 1-inch strips.

Wash the strawberries, remove the stems and cut in half.

Toss the fruit in your favorite serving bowl, squeeze the lime on top and garnish with mint.

Here is a second option for a winter fruit salad.

4 Seedless Oranges peeled
3 Pink Grapefruits peeled
1 Pineapple cored, skin removed and cut into quarter inch cubes
2 Star fruits cut to accent the shape of the fruit Pomegranate Seeds

Remove the white pith from the oranges and grapefruits; quarter the fruit lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch slices. Toss with the pineapple, star fruit and pomegranate seeds in a bowl and serve.

As a side for your fruit salad recipes, serve them with plain or vanilla yogurt (Greek yogurt is a great option as well) or add some additional eatable natural beauty to your buffet by making "fruit cups" with a piece of bib lettuce or sometimes called Boston lettuce.

You can always hallow out a watermelon and create a basket to place the fruit in or take the fruit and create different shapes and sizes using a melon baller. And don't forget about a Madeline, it also works great for creating textured sliced fruit!

Another fun way to display your winter fruit salad is in a bowl made of ice. You can also decorate your ice bowl by freezing flowers, or herbs such as rosemary, mint and basil or sliced citrus such as lemons and oranges in the ice as well.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the winter and try one of these fruit salad recipes for a winter fruit salad. Until next time, remember the Budget Bash mantra: make it simple, stylish, fun and economical to all!