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Our Cranberry Fluff Salad recipe is made with fresh cranberries, sweetened with crushed pineapple and loaded with fluffy marshmallows. It's a holiday tradition everyone looks forward to.
This may be my favorite side for Thanksgiving, it's right up there with Thanksgiving Stuffing, Homemade Rolls, my favorite Turkey, and easy Lemon Cream Pie!
Cranberry Fluff is the unsophisticated salad adults love as much as kids.
It's such an old-fashioned mid-western tradition to serve fluffy dessert “salads” like this at parties, but it's a holiday tradition I secretly love (it wouldn't be Easter without our Ambrosia or Frog eye salad!). We've been making this one for decades, but after trying Mel's version a few years ago, with a little cream cheese added for stability, that's now our go-to method. It's a bright spot on the table with all of our other favorite side dishes.
Only 6 Ingredients Needed:
How to make Cranberry Fluff Salad:
Combine: Blend cranberries in a food processor until chopped, but not mushy. Pour into a large bowl, add sugar and pineapple and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour, then drain some (not all) of the juice.
Add Cream: Beat the cream cheese until smooth then pour in the heavy cream and whip until stiff peaks form. Fold into the cranberry salad. Stir in marshmallows. Cover cranberry fluff salad and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
More Side Dishes to Try:
- Ambrosia Salad
- Chicken Pasta Salad
- Jello Fruit Salad
- Corn Casserole
- Poutine
- 7-Layer Dip
- Buttermilk Cornbread
- Baked Potato Salad
- Cheesy Breadsticks
Cranberry Fluff Salad
Ingredients
- 12 ounce package fresh cranberries
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 8 ounce can crushed pineapple, , undrained
- 2 cups mini marshmallows
- 4 ounces cream cheese, , softened
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Chop Cranberries: Add the cranberries to a food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped, but not mushy.
- Marinate: Pour the cranberries into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar and pineapple and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for one hour or longer.
- Whip Cream: In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Pour in the cream and whip until stiff peaks form
- Combine: Drain some of the juice from the cranberry mixture. Fold the whipped cream mixture into the salad. Fold in marshmallows.
- Chill in the refrigerate for 3-4 hours (or overnight), before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I originally shared this recipe November 2015. Updated November 2019 and November 2024.
Recipe from my Grandma, with cream cheese idea adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.
This was SO GOOD and SO easy! Everyone LOVED it. Will be a new staple for sure!
Could this be frozen? I made too much!
Sorry, once you add the whipped cream it will not freeze well.
Arlene: This is 4th time I have made this recipe in this Month of Dec. 2019. 3 pot lucks and now for xmas day dinner.
Everubody likes it. It is quite simple and I will keep on making it. Give this recipe a try
Do you think I could prepare the recipe then freeze it? I’m trying to find something I can prepare ahead of a family gathering and simply thaw when we travel.
I would not freeze it. It will not thaw well. But it can be made ahead and refrigerated. It would travel well if you are with an hour.
Easy and delicious. The more it sits the better it gets. Flavors really come together.
This was delicious! My kids want me to make this with strawberries instead of cranberries. Since strawberries are already sweet, would you add any sugar to them? If so, how much? I’m thinking it would need to be much less than 1 cup.
I agree, I wouldn’t add too much extra sugar. Sounds delicious!
Question:
I am not a fan of cream cheese except in hot, savory foods. But I also know that you can make ambrosia with sour cream, and it doesn’t taste like sour cream because of the marshmallows and fruit. So my question is, how cream cheesy is this? Like, I don’t like cheesecake or cream cheese frosting or cream cheese on a bagel. But I’m kind of intrigued by this recipe.
I don’t think it’s “cream cheesy” at all, but if you re worried about it at all you can leave it out, no problem.
I added some sliced pecans however, it would have been just as delicious without. Yummy stuff either way that’s for sure.
The name of this couldn’t ring any more true, “Everybody’s favorite Cranberry Salad”, from the littlest to the eldest this is a HIT. It’s not overly sweet and it’s the perfect pop from the cranberries to the sweet gooeyness of the marshmallows. Even the leftovers are yummy – if it makes it to leftover. 😉
I made this yesterday for my family and it is exactly what my grandma used to make! I don’t have her recipe, so I am delighted to find this! I will be making this for every special family function ❤️
Made for Christmas dinner delious.
This is one of your recipes that I made today. This cranberry dessert was so delicious!! I will be making this for Sunday dinners, too. Thanks!! 🙂