Grandma’s Ambrosia Salad
I’m so thrilled to share my grandma’s classic ambrosia salad recipe for the iconic light and refreshing dessert that includes mandarin oranges, coconut, marshmallows, pineapple, and whipped topping. Known in some circles as “fruit salad with marshmallows”, this easy five-ingredient dessert takes only five minutes to make, is super customizable, and perfect for serving a crowd.
I can’t ever remember a time before ambrosia. We’ve been eating it in my family since I was old enough to chew, and most likely, for decades before I was even a blip on the radar. It seemed that my grandma could make ambrosia appear out of thin air, and we never ran out.
It was served up routinely for Christmas and Easter, and pretty much non-stop during the summer. Compared to things like cake and pie, ambrosia salad is a wonderfully fresh and light dessert.
What IS ambrosia salad?
If you’ve never heard of it before, you’re probably wondering what in the world this is! Ambrosia is an American version of fruit salad that dates back to the late 19th century and it seems as though everyone’s family has their own recipe or spin on it.
At its core, however, it traditionally contains pineapple and oranges (either fresh or canned), miniature marshmallows, and coconut. Keep reading for lots of variations!
Tips for Customization
My mom said my grandma used canned mandarin oranges and crushed pineapple. My sister insisted that my grandma used fruit cocktail. (Did anyone else’s grandma have can after can of fruit cocktail in the pantry? My grandma always had it, in large quantities, and I remember eating it a lot when I was a kid.)
My grandma’s original recipe is the one you will find below and included canned mandarin oranges and canned crushed pineapple, as well as coconut and miniature marshmallows, all tossed with whipped topping. However, when my grandma was in a pinch and didn’t have the oranges and pineapple, she’d simply use a big can of fruit cocktail, and we grew up eating both versions often!
That said, ambrosia is totally adaptable, and can include some combination of the following:
- Mandarin oranges
- Fresh orange segments
- Pineapple
- Coconut
- Miniature marshmallows
- Maraschino cherries
- Bananas
- Strawberries
- Grapes
- Pecans
Save This Recipe
Enter your email address, and we'll send it straight to your inbox!
And How, Exactly, Do You Make Ambrosia?
Okay, we have the main ingredients above, but what holds it all together? My grandma always used a single tub of Cool Whip and called it a day, but there are many other variations that use some combination of the following:
- Cool Whip
- Pudding
- Cream cheese
- Yogurt
- Sour cream
- Jello
There is even a green ambrosia version that uses pistachio pudding! (Sometimes it’s referred to as “Watergate Salad“)
And if you opt for the combination of grapes, cream cheese, and sour cream, you’ll be close to making my easy grape salad!
Can You Make Ambrosia Salad a Day Ahead?
Yes, yes, yes! The beauty of this five-ingredient, five-minute recipe is that you can mix it together the day before you need it and pop it in the refrigerator. I think it’s even better once it has been chilled for a few hours, but you can also serve it immediately if you need to!
Can you Freeze Ambrosia?
I only recommend freezing ambrosia if you use all canned fruit and Cool Whip.
The lesson here? Ambrosia is tremendously adaptable. Use what you have on hand. Use your family’s favorite fruits. Make it your own. Sometimes the simplest of recipes become the most special. Using fresh fruit and/or homemade whipped cream can cause it to be soggy and watery when thawed.
Watch the Recipe Video:
If you make this recipe and love it, I would so appreciate it if you would take a moment to leave a rating below. Thank you so much! ❤️️
Grandma’s Ambrosia Salad
Ingredients
- 11 ounce (311.85 g) can mandarin oranges, drained
- 8 ounce (226.8 g) can crushed pineapple, drained
- 2 cups (180 g) sweetened shredded coconut
- 2 cups (150 g) miniature marshmallows
- 8 ounce (226.8 g) container Cool Whip
Instructions
- Place the oranges, pineapple, coconut and marshmallows in a large bowl. Add the Cool Whip and, using a rubber spatula, gently fold the mixture until all of the ingredients are evenly distributed.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Ambrosia can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Fruit Options: Fresh orange segments, maraschino cherries, bananas, strawberries, grapes, or canned fruit cocktail.
- Dressing Options: Pudding, cream cheese, yogurt, sour cream, or Jello.
- Cool Whip Alternative: Use homemade whipped cream in its place.
- Freezing Instructions: I only recommend freezing ambrosia if you use all canned fruit and Cool Whip. Using fresh fruit and/or homemade whipped cream can cause it to be soggy and watery when thawed.
- Make-Ahead: This can be mixed together and refrigerated the day before serving.
- Storage: Ambrosia can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
[Photography by Ari of Well Seasoned]
This recipe was originally published on May 30, 2012.
It look yummy. Thank for sharing.
Love Ambrosia salad….sharing with you that instead of Whipped Cream, I use 1 can of condensed milk and the same measurement of Sour Cream!!! Not so sweet and very light, especially after a heavy meal. All my fruits in juice… no syrup (and NO coconut) ! Thank you for sharing @thebrowneyedbaker
Ours is almost the same,we use sour cream instead of cool whip..
You reminded me of my grandma she use to make salads specially for me. Now coming to this ambrosia salad this one is superb . I am delighted to see pics you shared and looking forward to make this tonight.
I have made this for years and use Sour Cream instead of Cool Whip. A good choice if you want less chemicals in your food.
Oh my gosh this brings back memories! In our house this was called “5-Cup Salad” and was made with sour cream instead of Cool Whip. The last time I made this was with my mom a week before she passed away. Thank you for helping me bring back these nice memories!
I’m so sorry for your loss, Megan, but glad I could help conjure up some good memories :) xo
So simple, yet so good. I remember having a version of this salad as a kid.
Here’s the Ambrosia I grew up with (I turn 60 on Saturday):
1 small can chunky pineapple, reserving juice
2 small cans mandarin oranges
1/2 package mini marshmallows
1/2 package coconut
1 pint sour cream
2 bananas, sliced
1 small jar maraschino cherries, halved
Dunk banana slices in reserved pineapple juice, drain. Drain all remaining fruits and pour into a large clear glass bowl. Slowly stir in sour cream. Add marshmallows and coconut. Cover and refrigerate.
It is DELISH!!
Thanks so much for sharing (love the bananas dipped in pineapple juice!), and HAPPY BIRTHDAY! xo
Bananas won’t turn brown and why do you dunk the bananas?
My family called it Moron Salad (named by my step-grandmother) because it used 1 cup of each ingredient – mandarin oranges, pineapple chunks, coconut, mini marshmallows & sour cream. The name wouldn’t be considered PC these days but this was about 50 yrs. ago.
Times have certainly changed! But I love the easy measurements, makes it so easy to remember! Thanks for sharing!
Yes, this is how I remember it. We had it frequently at large family gatherings. We called it 5 cup salad. I little nicer than moron salad, haha.
Yes! I grew up eating Ambrosia Salad and I fed it to my children. We used with your recipe – except used sour cream. Oh dear. If my husband is looking over my shoulder, we will be having it again very soon. His favorite, and he has forgotten it.
My mother made it – and I am 74. Yikes! A very old recipe!
Thanks for the memories.
Haha! Yes, a totally retro recipe, I love it! Surprise your husband with a batch! :)
This is the southern ambrosia I grew up with. in Florida. It was most often served at Christmas when the citrus was freshly picked off of the trees. Sally’s Christmas Ambrosia
Titusville, Florida – 1965
Ingredients:
3 large oranges or 4 smaller ones
1 grapefruit, white
1 grapefruit, pink
1 cup grapes, green seedless
1 cup grapes, red seedless
2 bananas, peeled and sliced crosswise
1 small jar maraschino cherries (including juice)
3 tbsp powdered sugar.
Toppings –
Grated fresh coconut and chopped pecans.
Directions
Peel the citrus and cut fruit sections away from the segments between them. Put in large bowl and add juice squeezed from the remaining carcasses of the fruit. Add grapes, banana slices, cherries and juice, and powdered sugar. Stir gently until sugar is incorporated; then chill covered for 1 hour. Place toppings in small containers with spoons next to the ambrosia bowl for serving.
Thank you so much for sharing, it sounds delicious!
Boy, is ambrosia a blast from the past. When I was a kid, I was always in charge of making it. Back then we used dream whip which was pkgs of whipped topping mix added to milk. Thanks for the memories!
You’re welcome! Totally nostalgic for me, too!!
Yes, very nostalgic! I’m 68 and was taught to cook, by my grandma, who was born in 1881. I believe that all the Jello products came out in the 1930’s, maybe. Even my mother-in-law made these salads too. She was the Queen of Jello. I think she tried and was always making any of the new recipes that came out. It was always a treat to eat at her house because there was always a new Jello to eat and I’d go home with the recipe too! Still use them 45 years later as my favorites were a peaches and cream salad and also a layered blueberry salad. OMG, you’ve refreshed my mind and we have a food laden holiday quickly approaching! I’m not really a turkey fan, just the dark meat cold, so I may just be eating a Jello and stuffing Thanksgiving feast. I can really handle that one!
Is there a substitution for the shredded coconut?…
Hi Susan, Not specifically, but if you read above, there are a lot of options in terms of add-ins, so feel free to choose what you’d like!
This looks amazing and so festive, I can’t wait to try it!
I add sliced bananas and uncrushed pecans or walnuts or whateverer is available.
Can’t wait to try this
Thank you for such a heart warming post. I myself make piergoes a receipt from Grandma Checkie for the holidays as well. I wish I knew your grandma first name so I could call them grandma ” so and so ” ambrosia. But that’s okay you need not respond. Guess it’s our way of having them be part of our lives forever. That is of course if our future families carry on our tradition. Any way. Thank you for sharing. Will make this for Christmas.
I’m 66. My mom died when I was 16 and I remember her making this salad – the version with sour cream called “5-Cup Salad.” I’ve made it nearly every year since as part of Thanksgiving dinner. Funny, I never think of it as a summer dish!
You wrote about wanting to ask your dad or grandma questions. I’ve had the same experience and still do on occasion. Often it’s stuff that I didn’t know I’d want to know when I was much younger. And often it’s about recipes.
Michelle, Just wondering if you double the ambrosia recipe or not? And we have always thought of it as a salad and not a dessert. Also I loved your commentary on your Italian grandmother’s hospitality–what you said is so true!!! My mom is Italian and we always want to have more than enough and choices (something for everyone). So that is why I am wondering if you doubled the ambrosia recipe. (And it did look neat in the trifle. Is that one batch?) Thanks!
Hi Kathy, Yes, you could definitely double this recipe! Enjoy :)
I always doubled our “Fluff” salads as we used to call them, depending on the flavor of the gelatin or pudding mix. My 3 kids always wanted “Cherry Fluff” salad, which I obviously made with cherry flavored gelatin. Many years ago when my family had all settled locally, our holiday meals had a lot attendees. I had the largest dining area which could accommodate my 12 foot, when fully extended, dining room table and the secondary table of 6 feet long, including an excess of card tables, we had a lot of room! I do not like mini-marshmallows so I eliminated them and upped the fruits! I did double the recipe and made two flavors, the cherry and a pistachio flavor which were of holiday colors.
Really enjoyed reading this, I’m a great grandmother and was looking for an old recipe. It had mandarin oranges, pineapple, and of all things cottage cheese with lime jello. I need to talk to my niece but it really sounds like it might have been made from a ambrosia recipe. By the way the cottage cheese made it not so sweet. Need to find the other ingredient now. It was great and had no coconut in it.
Does any one know if ambrosia can be made without coconut. I love coconut flavor but I do not like the texture of coconut. I would love to hear a response from anyone. Looking forward to your response.
Thanks
Hi Gee, You can omit the coconut if you wish.
I never used any coconut in one of mine (I always made 2; 1 with coconut, one without) as my husband, my youngest son and 1 great-aunt didn’t like it. No problems.
Hi Gee, was just reading some of the comments here and saw yours. I was reading peoples comments elsewhere up above and saw a lady used Greek yogurt in her Ambrosia. I had read on other recipes (not on here) about a lady who liked the flavor of coconut but not the actual texture and she substituted coconut flavored yogurt/greek yogurt. That might work!
I was searching the web for this exact recipe. My mom made this when I was a kid. I’ve seen many versions while looking for this one. I’ve seen sour cream, cream cheese, mayonnaise, or yogurt but this is what I wanted to make my mom for Mother’s Day. Both my mom and I love it and I’m a mom too. As far as the memories it so true. I did not grow up having any grandparents on either side nor did I grow up with a father so I urge everyone to cherish who ever they have and make beautiful memories that will transcend along not only your lifetime but maybe your grandchildren as well if we are so blessed. Thanks for sharing your memories with us and for the recipe. I can’t wait not only to make it but eat it too. You can have your Ambrosia and eat it too!
Memories are such a precious gift!! I think of my “Granny” and “Grandma” almost daily and both sadly have been gone many years now. I wanted to share with you my memory of Ambrosia salad. 15 years ago I married. I remember being a young girl and going to many Bridal showers at my “Granny’s” house. Aunts, Cousins and neighbour girls getting married, all were given showers. Along with rolled sandwiches, ambrosia or 5 cup salad as I knew it, was served along with tea in cups and saucers and a hidden sticker under a random saucer :). As I had said I married 15 years ago and it was not until a shower was hosted in my Granny ‘s home by my Mother and Aunts, complete with rolled sandwiches, 5 cup salad and tea in a collection of tea cups, did I really believe that I was getting married! It continues to amaze me just how much a recipe can transport us to times in our lives we hold so precious. Thank you for sharing yours.
By the way, I am attending a bridal shower next week and I have decided, 5 cup salad will be my contribution to the celebration. :)
Loved your story! I lost my grandmother 10 years ago at 91, but she is always close to my heart and in thought. She taught me how and inspired me to love cooking and food! Thankfully, I have many of her very old cookbooks and recipes. I’ve been looking for an ambrosia recipe I could modify for my dairy and nut allergic daughter, and I think I’ve found it – thank you!! Unfortunately cool whip does contain milk proteins, so I’m going to substitute “Sour Supreme”. It is a dairy free sour cream substitute that is made with soy, and I’ve used it successfully in other recipes. Hoping this will work! I try to accommodate her as much as possible so she isn’t left out of the eating fun, which to me are some of the best Christmas memories!
Could I completely omit the coconut? Would it be any different? If its essential is there another option because I’m ellergic to coconut?
Yes, you could omit it without an issue.
How lovely!! Ambrosia is the best and the canned versions of the fruits are much better and sweeter than the fresh ones. Plus the cool whip cream is sooooo much better than whipped cream that you made yourself!! Why bother when cool whip is so good for you??????
I just lost my grandma last year, right before her 98th birthday. She too was an Italian lady who made ambrosia for summer gatherings. I still remember those recycled cool whip containers she’d use to send us left overs. My mom has a hand written version of this, except she threw in a small can of fruit cocktail and a little sour cream. We’d fight with my cousins over who got the maraschino cherries. Thanks for reviving this oldie but goodie. I brought this to a BBQ last summer and our friends’ children never had the pleasure of eating this light and tasty favorite.
Tasked with providing a fruit salad for church and automatically thought about my late Aunt Sarah. As a kid I remember watching her feel each and every orange and grapefruit with a smile on her face. Ofcourse coconut, powered sugar and cherries were used, and it was a great and sweet dessert. Can’t get a kid near grapefruit. I miss her tremendously and this gave me another opportunity to think her of her…with love.
My hubby and I were sitting here arguing about how ambrosia is made and what ingredients are used, well darnnit, he wins, I thought that you whip jello until it is creamy (orange, pineapple or lemon) and then add fruit. He says it is cream. I love your grandma’s recipe. I miss my Nanny with all my heart, even though she never cooked, she worked outside the home, there were a few recipes she had that i adore just like you do. When I make this we will salute your Grammy.
My Grandmother made this recipe twice a year, once for Easter and then for Christmas. After moving to Missouri from California (Dad was Military); I never had it again. My Grandmother has since had a stroke and her memory is not the greatest, I have tried getting the recipe from her and she only remembers bits and pieces.
This is BY FAR the closest I have come to the original that she made, it is missing one element…she always used maraschino cherries (halved).
I WILL be making this for Christmas this year (as a surprise).
Hopefully I can do it justice.
Thank you for the recipe and letting us share in your memories.