This Ambrosia Salad is a holiday dessert classic everyone knows and loves! We serve it year-round at family dinners and love how fantastic it tastes. It’s easy to make, and everyone loves it!

Ambrosia Salad over a white ramekin with fruit and a maraschino cherry

Ambrosia Salad Recipe

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I must admit this is one of my favorite great holiday recipes! I grew up eating this fruit dessert salad along with Watergate Salad. They were my favorite side dishes every year.

Now that I am an adult and do the grocery shopping, I will admit that I make this salad frequently. It is so good, and everyone loves it. Plus, you can make it and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve it.

The flavors of this salad are just delicious!

There are so many unique variations of this dessert salad. I will get a ton of eye rolls and emails for calling this a salad since it doesn't have any lettuce, but there is fruit, and it is in a bowl, so we will call it a side dish or dessert salad.

We skip putting nuts in this Ambrosia Fruit Salad since we have so many family members who can not have nuts but can definitely add them if you like them. Our creamy base is Cool Whip and vanilla Greek yogurt, but there are also variations with sour cream and cottage cheese.

mini marshmallows, coconut, greek yogurt, fruit in a can, cool whip, pineapple, and mandarin oranges in a white bowl on a counter

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of the simple ingredients for making an epic Ambrosia Salad! The printable recipe card at the bottom of the post includes specific measurements and step-by-step instructions.

Fruit Cocktail
Pineapple Chunks or Crushed Pineapple
Mandarin Oranges
Mini Marshmallows
Cool Whip Whipped Topping
Vanilla Greek Yogurt
Shredded Coconut
Maraschino Cherries

Optional Add-Ins: Green Grapes, Bananas, Pecans, Nuts, peaches, blueberries, strawberries

Pineapple - You can use pineapple tidbits, chunks or crushed pineapple depending on the texture and size you like in your salad.

Marshmallows - You can use plain white mini marshmallows or the fun mini fruit flavored marshmallows

Equipment Needed

Large Mixing Bowl: We are big fans of this glass batter bowl with a handle. It makes it easy to mix ingredients and keeps the mixing bowl steady on the counter.
Rubber Spatula
Can Opener

How to make Ambrosia Salad

I've included complete instructions in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here's a quick version.

canned fruit mix, pineapple, and coconut in a glass mixing bowl

Step 1 - In a Large bowl combine fruit salad, mandarin oranges and pineapple (drain juices first), and coconut in a large bowl and stir together with vanilla yogurt.

Make sure to gently fold everything together. You don't want to break up the fruit or squish the mini marshmallows.

Step 2 - Add in Cool Whip and stir together.

Store in the refrigerator hours before serving this great side dish.

Serve in a large serving bowl or individual small bowls/ramekins.

Ambrosia fruit salad in a white bowl next to a bowl of maraschino cherries, a stack of plates with forks, and a stack of small bowls on a cloth napkin

Preparation and Storage

Make-Ahead: This Ambrosia Salad is make-ahead-friendly! Let it chill in your fridge for at least two hours before serving, preferably overnight.

Storage: Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container and enjoy them within three days. Stir it before serving to reincorporate the components.

Freezing/How to Freeze: We don’t recommend freezing this sweet holiday side dish. The fruits contain a lot of water, and the Cool Whip and vanilla yogurt may separate and change texture when thawed.

Recipe Variations

Substitutions:

You can use pineapple chunks or crushed pineapple, depending on the texture and size of this fruit you like in your salad.

You can use plain white mini marshmallows for a classic look or the fun, fruit-flavored mini marshmallows for flair and color.

This dessert salad is adaptable to any other favorite fruits you enjoy!

Vegetarian Option: Replace the mini marshmallows with a vegetarian alternative to make this recipe vegetarian. Many grocery store brands contain gelatin, an animal-derived ingredient.

Vegan Option: In addition to the guidance for vegetarians, vegans should use a dairy-free alternative to vanilla yogurt and Cool Whip to make this dish vegan.

Gluten-Free: This sweet side dish is gluten-free if you use gluten-free marshmallows. Cool Whip is gluten-free.

Smaller Serving Size + Larger Group/More Servings: The written recipe makes six servings. Scale it up or down to your desired yield. Serve it in a large serving bowl for a group or in small bowls or ramekins for individual servings.

Sugar-Free: Replace the vanilla yogurt and mini marshmallows with sugar-free alternatives; check that your fruit cocktail, mandarin oranges, canned pineapple, and maraschino cherries have no sugar added, and use Cool Whip Zero Sugar to make it sugar-free.

Small white bowl with ambrosia salad with a maraschino cherry on top in front of a large bowl of salad and a bowl of cherries

Tips for the Best Ambrosia Salad

We make this with Cool Whip instead of whipped cream. Cool Whip does a great job maintaining the fluffiness even when serving this sweet holiday salad the next day. Heavy whipping cream can deflate and not give the same texture. Check out all of our Cool Whip recipes!
Nutrition information, including calories, protein, calcium, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamin c, potassium, cholesterol, sodium, trans fat, monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, and more, will vary depending on the products used.

What to Serve with Ambrosia Salad

This potluck-friendly Ambrosia Salad is the perfect excuse to enjoy a sweet, fruit-filled dessert salad with any meal, and leftovers taste even better the day after! Here are some pairing suggestions to inspire your menu planning.

Sides: Broccoli Casserole, Apple Stuffing, Funeral Potatoes, BLT Pasta Salad, Southern Fried Cabbage with Bacon, Air Fryer Baked Potato, Jiffy Cornbread with Sour Cream, Sweet Potato Casserole with Candied Yams, Southern Style Green Beans, CrockPot Bourbon Baked Beans