How To Grill Small Fruits Without Losing Them In The Grates

Whether you want to use grilled cubes of peaches to top bowls of ice cream or are hoping to enhance breakfast pancakes with the taste of fire-licked blueberries, there's an easy way to make sure bite-sized pieces aren't lost in the flames of your grill. Instead of trying to place fruit precariously onto grates, stack your choice of cut fruits and berries onto skewers. The pierced pieces will be easy to rotate, ensuring you can get an even cook along with that smoky, drool-inducing caramelization you're after. 

If you're using wood skewers for the task, be sure to soak each wooden stick before lining up fruit pieces along the skewer. Dry skewers are more likely to burn when set on a grill, and while wooden pieces will inevitably char, you won't have to worry about unexpected kindling lighting up your grill if the skewers are damp. Alternatively, metal skewers from Amazon can be used to ensure even temperatures while skewed fruit rests over burning coal. For those wanting to amp up their grilling accouterments, grill baskets can be put into the grilling game, so you can toss in handfuls of grapes and strawberries without having to worry about pieces going missing.

Make fruit skewers ahead of time so that when cravings hit you have the materials you need to fire up the grill and get to eating as soon as possible. A batch of compiled fruit skewers also makes for an easy hosting hack, and you can customize the assemblies of fruit according to the season. If you can't get your schedule together to do any advance meal planning and have guests coming over for tonight's dinner, you can set up a DIY table with empty skewers and various cut fruits for family and friends to line up as they please. 

Set out trays of hot honey and dishes of toasted coconut pieces for diners to dress up their charred fruit skewers, and you won't have to do much else in the way of party prep. You may want to grill more fruit than what you think you will need, however. Any remaining pieces can be plopped into drinks, set tastefully onto serving platters and charcuterie boards, or kept in the fridge to gussy up tomorrow's grilled nectarine salad and overnight oats.