Ambrosia Salad is a classic holiday recipe and always a crowd-pleaser. This marshmallow fruit salad with whipped cream recipe is easy to make and a great dessert salad for every occasion. The fruit salad is made with miniature marshmallows, pineapple chunks, mandarin oranges, cherries, coconut, pecans, whipped cream, and vanilla greek yogurt. Trust me, the greek yogurt makes a tasty addition to this classic party recipe!
Ambrosia Salad
Ambrosia salad is a twist on the traditional fruit salad. A classic marshmallow fruit salad recipe is made with pineapple, mandarin oranges, miniature marshmallows, and coconut. The fruit salad can also be made with other ingredients like bananas, grapes, maraschino cherries, strawberries, and nuts.
This ambrosia salad recipe is made with homemade whipped cream using heavy cream and sugar. Sour cream is often mixed with the whipped cream, but I like to make my ambrosia salad with yogurt. I also added fruit marshmallows instead of plain marshmallows. This is totally optional, both will work great in the salad.
The vanilla Greek yogurt helps thicken the whipped cream and surprisingly doesn’t make this dessert salad too sweet. It’s the perfect combination and will be a must-have recipe for every holiday gathering.
HOW TO MAKE AMBROSIA MARSHMALLOW FRUIT SALAD {VIDEO}
- Begin by placing your whisk and mixing bowl in the refrigerator while prepping the salad.
- In a large bowl, combine the fruit together.
- The pineapple and mandarin oranges can be fresh or canned in juice, not syrup. Drain and pat the fruit dry with a napkin to remove excess juice.
- Drain maraschino cherries, pat dry, and cut in half.
- Chop pecans to small bits and in with the rest of the ingredients.
- Pour heavy cream and sugar into the chilled mixing bowl. Whisk until whipped cream is thick.
- Mix in vanilla Greek yogurt with whipped cream.
- Carefully fold in whipped cream into the fruit salad.
- Cover and chill for a couple of hours before serving.
Can I make ambrosia salad a day ahead?
- Yes, the salad serves best when it has had time to chill. The whipped cream will settle into the fruit and the flavors of the fruit will blend together.
Can I make ambrosia salad with cool whip?
- Yes, if you prefer to simplify the recipe you can use cool whip.
Are the pecans necessary in the recipe?
- The addition of nuts is optional. If there are known nut allergies, exclude pecans and possibly coconut if needed. On the other hand, if you prefer walnuts feel free to use them instead of pecans.
More dessert recipes:
- Mini Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
- Strawberry Pretzel Dessert
- Banana Pudding
- Butterfinger Fudge
- Toffee Chocolate Cheese Ball
The BEST Ambrosia Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups miniature marshmallows
- 20 oz pineapple chunks drained
- 11 oz mandarin oranges drained
- 1 cup sweetened coconut
- 1 cup pecans chopped
- 1/2 cup cherries halved, drained
- 1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
Instructions
- Whisk heavy cream and sugar until whipped cream is thick, about 3-5 minutes using a stand mixer. Stir in greek yogurt.
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
- Carefully fold in whipped cream until evenly mixed together.
- Cover and chill until ready to serve
This came out delicious! Usually this is made with cool whip so I never cared for it but using fresh whipped cream makes it unbelievable!
Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!