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This easy Ambrosia Fruit Salad is a classic creamy dessert made with mandarin oranges, pineapple, marshmallows, coconut, and whipped topping. Perfect for Easter, holidays, and potlucks.
Table of Contents
- Where does Ambrosia come from?
- How to make an Ambrosia Fruit Salad:
- Ingredient Notes:
- Directions:
- Recipe Tip
- How long can you keep Ambrosia?
- Recipe Tip
- Do I have to use coconut in the ambrosia?
- What to Serve with Ambrosia Fruit Salad:
- Try some of my other fruit and fluff salads:
- Easy Ambrosia Fruit Salad Recipe
- How long can you keep Ambrosia?
Where does Ambrosia come from?
When the salad is filled with fruit and marshmallows then coated in creamy cool whip, well that’s a salad anyone would love to eat!
The name “Ambrosia” comes from the ancient Greeks as the name of the food that the gods ate and was unable to be eaten by mortals. Well, this recipe is amazing, and anyone can definitely enjoy it and love!
This Easy Ambrosia Fruit Salad is a must try and a winner with the entire family. We love it as a treat and it’s the perfect sweet side for the holidays. And this dish is a typical Southern Recipe, but you can make it anywhere in the world and enjoy it!
How to make an Ambrosia Fruit Salad:
Prepare your fruits by draining them and letting them dry.
Slowly mix in the dry ingredients and then mix in the sour cream and cool whip.
Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Ingredient Notes:
For this recipe, I used canned fruits with the juice drained. In this Ambrosia Fruit Salad, I used the following:
Mandarin oranges: Use canned mandarins in juice for best flavor and texture.
Drain well and gently pat dry so the salad doesn’t get watery. You could also use canned peaches if you or fresh oranges in its place.
Pineapples: Crushed pineapple blends best into the creamy base. If you only have chunks, then cut them smaller pieces. Make sure to Drain thoroughly.
Cherries: Maraschino cherries add the classic color and sweetness. Pat dry and make sure you are using stemless or remove the stem before add them in.
Coconut Flakes: Sweetened shredded coconut gives the traditional flavor. You could use unsweetened coconut or just omit for a coconut-free version if you prefer it without.
Marshmallows: Mini marshmallows work best for this recipe.Fruit-flavored minis can add a fun twist for kids.
Cool whip: Thaw fully before mixing for smooth texture.
Sour Cream: Adds tang to balance the sweetness. You could also use a plain greek yogurt in place of sour cream.
Directions:
Step One: Drain all canned fruits and place in a large mixing bowl.
Recipe Tip
You can use a colander or lay out some paper towels to ensure the fruit is as dry as possible before mixing in the other ingredients if you want.
Add mini marshmallows and coconut flakes. I like to add these after the fruit to make it easier to drain all the fruit to make sure I get all the liquid out first.
Step Two: Gently fold in cool whip and sour cream until well combined.
How long can you keep Ambrosia?
Typically, this type of “salad” needs to be eaten pretty quickly. Ideally, you want to only keep this refrigerated for about 3 days. After 3 days, I would recommend discarding it.
Recipe Tip
One way to help extend this salad is to make sure your fruits are drained and dried as best as possible before mixing together. You do not want to bring any excess liquid to this party!
Do I have to use coconut in the ambrosia?
While coconut is one of the main ingredients in a classic ambrosia, if you do not want to add coconut that is no problem at all!
Coconut does add texture to the recipe, but if you don’t use it the ambrosia will still taste great!
What to Serve with Ambrosia Fruit Salad:
This creamy fruit salad pairs perfectly with many meals, especially during holidays and gatherings.
Popular pairings include:
- Easter ham
- BBQ chicken
- Pulled pork sandwiches
- Holiday dinners
- Potluck spreads
Try some of my other fruit and fluff salads:
Fruit Salad – I love summer foods. The fresh fruits and all things grilled. This Fruit Salad is so simple to make and the perfect summer side dish.
Orange Fluff – This Orange Fluff is the perfect light dessert. Made with mandarin oranges, marshmallows, orange Jell-o and an ingredient you would not expect this dessert tastes like an orange creamsicle!
Cranberry Fluff – This Cranberry Fluff is loaded with fruit, crunchy pecans, and sweet marshmallows. It’s the perfect treat and sweet side dish.
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Easy Ambrosia Fruit Salad
Ingredients
- 11 oz Mandarin oranges
- 20 oz Crushed pineapple
- 10 oz Maraschino cherries
- 2 cups Mini marshmallows
- 1 cup Sweetened coconut flakes
- 8 oz Cool whip
- 1/2 cup Sour cream
Instructions
- Drain all canned fruits and place in a large mixing bowl. Add mini marshmallows and coconut flakes.
- Gently fold in cool whip and sour cream until well combined.
Notes
How long can you keep Ambrosia?
Typically this type of “salad” needs to be eaten pretty quickly. Ideally, you want to only keep this refrigerated for about 3 days. After 3 days, I would recommend discarding it.- Tip – One way to help extend this salad is to make sure your fruits are drained and dried as best as possible before mixing together. You do not want to bring any excess liquid to this party!
Nutrition
I accidentally added a cup of sour cream.. now what?
This ambrosia salad was delicious! I’ve always made it with pineapple chunks before. The crushed pineapple gave it a much better texture — it wasn’t watery at all. This is now my go-to ambrosia recipe!
So glad to hear this! I love this ambrosia as well!
Would it be possible to substitute yoplait yogurt for the sour cream ?
Yeah that would work!
This is a family favorite! We add chopped pecans to ours, and usually bypass the marshmallows. There are so many fun ways to play with this dessert.
This is a great recipe. I like it better using sour cream with a little bit of cool whip. Maybe not the whole 8 ounces. It is VERY yummy, but it can be too sweet with the marshmallows, cool whip the sugar on the coconut and all the fruits, plus the cherries that are not really a fruit once they all all the sugar and dye in them. I have even substituted cream cheese one year when I couldn’t find the cool whip at the last minute. It was good and cream and not so sweet. I have also made home made whip cream with heavy cream and a pinch of sugar. That was a splendid version of it too. I think its best to make the night before so the marshmallows can melt a little bit. And it lets all of the flavors blend.
My great aunt used to slice the cherries and put it them on the top so that it didn’t make the salad pink. When you dug it you still got the cherries and it didn’t have the overpowering cherry juice, and artificial cherry flavor. I like to lay some of the oranges, ion the top for decoration. If you lay them on the top they are part of your salad they dont get all broken up. Thanks for publishing this. Sometimes I want to know the base recipe even though I grew up on this. Eyeballing the ingredients did not always work out well.
This is so good. I’m making it for my second time tomorrow for Thanksgiving. People…if you weren’t the one making/reading this recipe, then you’d never know there was sour cream in it. I don’t like sour cream either, but it tastes amazing in this! You can’t tell it’s sour cream! IT just makes it richer and creamier! Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone. The mandarin oranges also taste great in it, and I’m not the biggest fan of oranges either! They are way better than your average orange. Everyone at my work tried this when I made it last year, and even the pickiest of eaters absolutely loved it and couldn’t stop telling me how good it was.
Don’t like Sour Cream!! AND U used oranges!!
Throat Doc said NO cirrus – so I’ll NOT B doing
This U ever!! But it sounded Yummy till got
2 the Sour Cream & Oranges too😞😳😥👎
BUT crap do happen too!!f
You could always skip the orange and sour cream! Maybe add another fruit you enjoy. Hope you try other recipes, thanks for letting me know.
Cool piece of content. Check out my site too
Hi!! I’m excited about this recipe but can you tell me if it is ok to make a day ahead or will it get too loose?
thanks so much!!
Janice
It could get a little watery if sitting for to long. We always eat leftovers of it a day or two later and just drain any water. But you could mix the fruit and in the morning drain it well then add the rest. Hope you enjoy the recipe! =)
I LOVE this stuff! Both my mom and grandmother would make it! I don’t think I have their recipe, so I will for sure be using this one!
Ashley @ A Cute Angle
IT’s so yummy!! Thanks Ashley for coming by!! Hope your doing well!