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Cherry fluff salad is a vintage dessert that everyone loves! My recipe uses six simple ingredients to make a perfect sweet, fluffy confection with lots of cherry flavor.
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Pin RecipeA Salad You Can Have for Dessert!
If you like sweet, fruity, retro recipes like Snickers Salad, Strawberry Pretzel Dessert, and Waldorf Salad, then my cherry fluff salad recipe is for you. And if you like easy recipes, this one’s for you too! The whole dessert takes about 5 minutes to put together, with no baking and barely any measuring. All you need to do is put the ingredients into a bowl and stir!
Not only is there cherry pie filling in this recipe for that signature cherry flavor, but there’s pineapple too, doubling the amount of sweet fruit. Mini marshmallows and pistachios are mixed with the fruit and then sweetened condensed milk and Cool Whip make it creamy and fluffy.
(Can’t get enough cherries? Try my Cherry Cake too! Looking for another summery salad? You’ll love my Fruit Salad!)
My Tips for Perfect Cherry Fluff Salad
It’s super easy to make cherry fluff salad, but I’ve got a few additional tips to follow when you’re whipping up this recipe.
- Make sure the canned pineapple is well-drained. I like to pour the can of pineapple into a sieve and let it sit for at least 10 minutes to really get the juice out. If the pineapple is too wet, it makes the fluff salad watery. (You can save the juice for making smoothies!)
- Don’t use whipped cream. You need Cool Whip, not homemade whipped cream or canned whipped cream. Cool Whip is stabilized, which means it won’t deflate in the fridge.
- Yes, you can skip the condensed milk. You can omit the sweetened condensed milk from this recipe and still have a tasty salad that’s sweet, but not AS sweet.
Variations
- Use chopped pecans in place of pistachios, or omit the nuts if you don’t like them or you’re dealing with a nut allergy.
- Add one cup of shredded sweetened coconut for extra flavor and texture.
- Add ½ teaspoon of almond extract to the mix for a subtle flavor that will really take this cherry fluff salad to the next level.
How to Store Cherry Fluff Salad
Keep your old-fashioned cherry fluff in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for about 4-5 days. You may need to give it a good stir before serving to mix some of the juices back in. It does tend to separate after a few days.
You can also freeze this salad for up to 3 months. I love eating it frozen, although you can thaw it in the fridge too!
Cherry Fluff Salad
Ingredients
- 1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
- 1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 3 cups mini marshmallows
- 1 (8-ounce) tub Cool Whip
- 1 ½ cups pistachios
Garnish Suggestions
- Maraschino cherries
- Coconut, shredded and toasted
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients and stir together until well mixed.
- Transfer to a large serving bowl.
- Sprinkle the top with desired garnishes, then transfer to the refrigerator and allow to chill for at least 40 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
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Perfect and easy. Loved this recipe
I have made this salad for years. I love it, everyone loves it. HOWEVER, the last 3 times I have made it, it just stays creamy. What happened? Did something change with ingredients? I’m just so confused. So, the flavor should be 5 stars, but it just isn’t fluffy any more.