Cranberry salad (also known as cranberry fluff salad) is an airy, creamy and sweet-yet-tart side dish dream. It’s one of those retro dessert salads that never went out of style because of how good it is. The recipe for cranberry salad might’ve been invented way back when, but the dish is still often found at autumnal gatherings and winter holiday feasts. In fact, some people swear Thanksgiving isn’t complete without a cranberry fluff salad!
Cranberry Salad Ingredients
- Cranberries: Make it easy on yourself and pulse the cranberries in a good food processor to chop them up.
- Pineapple: We like to use one 20-ounce can of crushed pineapples for convenience, but you can certainly use fresh pineapple if you prefer.
- Mini marshmallows: It may seem like an odd ingredient, but there are a ton of great vintage marshmallow salad recipes out there (ambrosia salad, for example). This cranberry salad recipe is definitely one of our favorites.
- Apple: Use a tart and crisp green apple for this recipe for cranberry salad. Avoid any mealy, bland apples.
- Sugar: Since this is a salad with cranberry, you’ll need to sweeten it up with granulated sugar. Otherwise, it will be too tart to eat.
- Heavy whipping cream: One pint of heavy whipping cream has just enough for 2 cups. That means no leftovers are hanging out in the fridge for weeks.
- Walnuts: Toast the nuts to really bring them to life and remove any raw flavors.
Directions
Step 1: Prepare the fruits and chill
In a large bowl, stir together the chopped cranberries, crushed pineapple, mini marshmallows, chopped apple, sugar and salt. Cover the bowl with storage wrap and refrigerate the mixture overnight.
Step 2: Add the whipped cream and walnuts
In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the heavy whipping cream to stiff peaks. Fold the whipped cream and chopped walnuts into the cranberry mixture until evenly combined. Either serve the cranberry salad right away or cover it with storage wrap and place it back in the fridge until serving.
Recipe Variations
- Add fresh or dried fruit: This recipe for cranberry salad is easy to customize to your liking, especially with fruit. Add in dried figs or shredded coconut, or fresh fruit like pears, grapes, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries or mandarin oranges.
- Replace the walnuts: Not a fan of walnuts? Use pistachios, slivered almonds or candied pecans instead.
- Use a whipped topping: A premade whipped topping (that’s been thawed from frozen) makes an excellent, convenient substitute for the homemade whipped cream.
How to Store Cranberry Salad
To store any leftover salad with cranberry, cover the bowl with storage wrap or transfer the salad to an airtight container. It can last in the fridge for up to three days.
Can you make cranberry salad ahead of time?
Yes, and we even recommend it! Here’s a great timeline to follow for this cranberry salad recipe: The night before serving, toss together the fruit, sugar and salt. Cover the bowl with storage wrap and refrigerate it overnight. The next morning, beat the whipped cream to stiff peaks and add it to the fruit mixture along with the chopped walnuts. Cover the cranberry fluff salad and refrigerate it until you’re ready to serve it that afternoon or evening.
Cranberry Salad Tips
What should you serve with cranberry salad?
Cranberry salad is often served during the fall and winter, so we like to pair this side dish with cozy main meals. Serve it with our French onion pork chops, cheesy vegetable lasagna or slow-cooker short ribs.
Do you have to let the fruit and sugar sit overnight in the fridge?
Yes, this is a crucial, can’t-skip step! Cranberries are very tart, so letting them sit in the sugar removes a lot of the tartness. Otherwise, this cranberry fluff will be too tart to eat.
