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An easy recipe for Ambrosia Salad. A creamy dessert fruit salad made with tropical fruit. This Ambrosia fruit salad recipe is naturally gluten-free and has a dairy-free option.
Ambrosia Salad
Ambrosia Salad is a creamy fruit salad that is a Southern favorite to serve on holidays and at special gatherings. My husband’s family always made Ambrosia salad for holiday dinners and family get-togethers.
What Is In Ambrosia Salad?
This classic fruit salad is often served as a dessert. The base of the fruit salad is made with whipped topping and sour cream.
There is a combination of tropical fruit that includes canned pineapple, canned mandarin oranges, and shredded coconut. The fun part of this dessert is the addition of maraschino cherries, mini marshmallows, and chopped nuts.
This no-bake dessert can be made in just 10 minutes! You can see just how easy it is to make Ambrosia in the recipe video.
How To Make Ambrosia Salad
- In a large bowl, stir together the whipped topping and sour cream (or yogurt). (photo 1)
- Using a spatula, carefully fold remaining ingredients into whipped topping mixture. (photo 2)
- Chill at least 1 hour before serving. (photo 3)
- Store leftovers in an air-tight container and refrigerate.
Do I have To Use Whipped Topping?
I have always made Ambrosia Salad with a whipped topping like Cool Whip or CocoWhip. If you are not a big fan of whipped topping, you can just use sour cream, yogurt, or make your own homemade whipped cream.
Do I Have To Use Nuts In The Recipe?
If you are not a big fan of nuts, you can just leave them out. I personally like the crunch the nuts add to the salad.
What is great about this fruit salad is that you can customize it to your flavor likings. I have seen it made with the addition of grapes or sliced bananas.
Can I Make It Ahead of Time?
Absolutely! Ambrosia salad needs to let sit for at least a few hours before serving. So it can be easily made in the morning and then served as dessert after dinner.
How Long Will It Keep?
If you have any leftovers, just place it in an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Easy Dessert Salad
Ambrosia salad is a super easy dessert to make! Not only is this no-bake dessert easy to make, but it is also budget-friendly and is made with easy to find ingredients. The ingredients are naturally gluten-free and there are also dairy-free options for the recipe as well.
With just a few simple ingredients, you can whip up this dessert in less than 10 minutes. Ambrosia salad is perfect for holiday dinners, parties, and bringing to potlucks.
More Dessert Recipes To Try!
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Ambrosia Salad
Ingredients
- 8 ounces whipped topping, thawed (Cool Whip), For dairy-free use So Delicious CocoWhip
- 1/2 cup sour cream, or dairy-free vanilla yogurt
- 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- 1 11-ounce can mandarin oranges, drained
- 1 20-ounce can pineapple tidbits
- 1 16-ounce jar maraschino cherries, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 2 cups gluten-free mini marshmallows
Instructions
- In a large bowl, stir together the whipped topping and yogurt.
- Using a spatula, carefully fold remaining ingredients into whipped topping mixture.
- Cover and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
- Store leftovers in an air-tight container and refrigerate.
Video
Notes
- For the dairy-free option I used dairy-free use So Delicious CocoWhip and dairy-free vanilla yogurt.
- Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Mama says, "check all of your labels!"
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
just made the dairy free, gluten free version, as I am bringing this to a potluck that has a person attending that has a severe dairy version, and I am not disappointed. It tastes sooo good! It was also something my 4 year old son could help me make, so, that’s a win too! Love me some ambrosia salad.
Wow, until I stumbled across this recipe, I had completely forgotten that my Memere always made ambrosia at Easter! Now have to make it for our DF GF crew. I just need to get dye-free maraschino cherries (thankfully I know where to find them)!