Marshmallow Fruit Salad (Ambrosia Salad)

This Ambrosia salad is bursting with fruit, marshmallows and fluffy cream.  It is a marshmallow fruit salad that comes together in minutes and can be served as a side or dessert.

This recipe first appeared on Savory Experiments where I am a contributor.

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• What is Ambrosia Salad
• Ingredients
• Instructions
• FAQS
• More Easy Recipes
• Printable Recipe

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I remember the first time I had ambrosia fruit salad.  It was served as a side dish with Thanksgiving dinner and I couldn’t believe this fluffy, marshmallowy bowl of heaven was part of the main meal.  

It is a tradition in our family and is served with Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner as a side dish, but I usually steal an extra bowl for dessert and I’ve been known to eat it for breakfast the next morning too.  

What is Ambrosia Salad

Ambrosia salad is a mixed fruit salad with marshmallows and some sort of cream. 

It’s commonly made with a combination of sour cream and whipped topping such as Cool Whip, but can also contain yogurt or mayonnaise. 

Sour cream adds a nice contrast of flavor between the sweet fruit and marshmallows.

Ambrosia almost always contains pineapple and oranges, but you can add almost any fruit you like.  I always add a can of fruit cocktail and a handful of fresh grapes, but you could add chopped apple, pears, or even banana.

Adding nuts is optional, but adds a bit of crunch and texture.

Ingredients

There are a few key ingredients you will need to make this ambrosia salad, but what I love most is that you can really adjust most of the ingredients to suit your preferences.

Things you will need to make this salad are:

• Marshmallows – You will want to use mini marshmallows for this recipe. You can use plain marshmallows or the fruity rainbow marshmallows depending on your preference.
• Canned fruit – This can vary a bit depending on what you like. I use a combination of mandarin orange segments, pineapple tidbits, and fruit cocktail. But you could use peaches, pears, or whatever else you like.
• Fresh fruit – I always like to add a bit of fresh fruit to balance the texture in the salad. Things like sliced grapes, or apples, add a bit of crunch.
• Frozen Whipped Topping – Frozen whipped topping, like Cool Whip, is what you are looking for. This will add the fluffiness to the salad and it will not melt like fresh whipped cream.
• Sour cream – This helps cut the sweetness of the salad with a bit of tang. If you don’t like sour cream you can use Greek yogurt instead.

Optional add ins include things such as chopped walnuts, pecans or shredded coconut for a bit of texture.

Instructions

There are really only a few steps to making this marshmallow fruit salad.

Start by draining the fruit, then add the fruit, marshmallows and nuts to a large bowl and stir to combine.

Next, fold together the sour cream and whipped topping, then gently fold the mixture into the fruit and marshmallows.

Let the salad rest at least 4 hours before serving to allow the flavours to combine and the marshmallows to get soft and fluffy.

FAQS

More Easy Recipes

More Fruit Salads to Try

Honeydew Peach Salad – by 2 Cookin Mamas
Old Fashioned Watergate Salad – by Little Sunny Kitchen
Easy Grape Salad – by Mom On Timeout

Printable Recipe

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