Grandma’s 5 Cup Creamy Fruit Salad

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If you need the PERFECT side dish for summer, then this is the recipe for you! The best part is that this is a dump and go recipe, so you can throw it together in a matter of minutes!

Our cute grandma is an amazing cook! Many of our best recipes are from her kitchen. One of my favorite memories as a child is walking into her house and being hit by a wall of amazing smells . . . I miss those family dinners!
 

This fruit salad was a staple at most family get-togethers and the best part about it is that you don’t have to have any experience in the kitchen to whip it up! It is just a matter of dumping five ingredients in a bowl and mixing it together. It is a perfect side dish to any meal or is great to take to any pot-luck dinner (it can easily be doubled or tripled).

There are SO many variations of Grandma’s 5 Cup Creamy Fruit Salad (I included a couple below), but I like the original way my Grandma makes it best.
Variations:
1. Use vanilla yogurt in place of sour cream.
2. Use Pina Colada yogurt in place of sour cream.
3. Add 1/2 cup maraschino cherries.
4. Add chopped pecans for a crunch.
5. Top with corn flakes for a crunch.
6. Use Cool-Whip in place of sour cream – but really, the sour cream is AMAZING!)

Tips on making 5 cup Creamy Fruit Salad

  • If you are using canned fruit, but sure to drain it VERY well! If you don’t you will have a soggy salad by the time you are ready to eat it.
  • I know what you are thinking… the sour cream sounds gross. I’m telling you, just try it and your life will change forever. ha ha!
  • I wouldn’t suggest making this recipe the night before. If you do, it will be soggy in the morning.

 

How to Make Grandma’s 5 Cup Creamy Fruit Salad (Video)

Now here is the tricky part – What to serve with this delicious salad? These are some of my favorite Six Sisters’ Main Dishes that go PERFECT with Grandma’s Fruit Salad:
The PERFECT Steak
Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken
Steak and Mushroom Kabobs

Grandma's 5 Cup Creamy Fruit Salad

5 minPrep Time

5 minTotal Time

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Ingredients

  • 1 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
  • 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
  • 1-2 cups miniature marshmallows
  • 1 cup flaked coconut
  • 1 cup sour cream (light works great)*

Instructions

  1. Directions:
  2. Make sure your fruit is VERY well-drained or you will have a watery salad. Combine the oranges, pineapple, marshmallows, coconut, and sour cream. Stir until all mixed together. Refrigerate for 4-8 hours before serving. 
  3. Variations: 
  4. Use vanilla yogurt in place of sour cream.
  5. Use Pina Colada yogurt in place of sour cream.
  6. Add 1/2 cup maraschino cherries.
  7. Add chopped pecans for a crunch.
  8. Top with corn flakes for a crunch.
  9. Use Cool-Whip in place of sour cream.
7.8.1.2
1909
https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/grandmas-5-cup-creamy-fruit-salad/
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Menu Plans

We know how hard it can be to get dinner on the table and that’s exactly why we created the Six Sisters’ Menu Plan program! We offer several menu options so you can find the plan that works best for your family. Each week you will receive a menu plan and detailed shopping list that will make shopping a breeze! Each plan includes 6 main dish, 2 side dish, 2 dessert, and optional side dish recipes. We’ve done all the busy work for you, so you just need to shop and cook!

See Plan Options

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Berry Cheesecake Pudding Salad
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Comment on this Recipe

38 Responses to “Grandma’s 5 Cup Creamy Fruit Salad”

  3. Grace S.
    A friend of mine brought five cups salad to a pot luck once - it was delicious! She also said the recipe was a family classic. I may just have to try making this. I wonder if plain greek yogurt would work in place of sour cream? I think probably!
    May 3, 2012 at 3:10 pm
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    • Kathleen
      I made this exactly as directed 2 days before Thanksgiving, I took it out of the fridge Thanksgiving day and the marshmallows didn't disolve and the salad was very bitter what did I do wrong ? I followed the directions exactly to the T what went wrong ? I drained all the fruit cans before adding to the bowl. I didn't serve the fruit salad it was too bitter to consume, maybe I could have added granulated sugar?
      November 22, 2017 at 5:24 pm
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  15. Jae
    I have made this salad for about 20 years! I cannot eat any kind of fruit salad made with cool whip anymore. Sour cream makes it so much creamier. My husband (boyfriend at the time) didn't like coconut, so I substituted the coconut for apples. It's yummy and adds a great crunch. =)
    June 19, 2012 at 6:57 pm
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  16. Jae
    I have made this salad for about 20 years! I cannot eat any kind of fruit salad made with cool whip anymore. Sour cream makes it so much creamier. My husband (boyfriend at the time) didn't like coconut, so I substituted the coconut for apples. It's yummy and adds a great crunch. =)
    June 19, 2012 at 6:57 pm
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  19. Amanda Mertz
    Just saw this on Pinterest and had to check it out...it's the exact same recipe that my family calls "Aunt Frieda's Marshmallow Salad"! Aunt Frieda was my great aunt and my dad says she was old when he was a kid! She could down a beer like no one's business and you'd better keep your hands away from the car door when she was slamming it closed! Aunt Frieda would make it every Sunday to bring to the family lake house and it was the best thing ever. People hear the ingredients and think yuck but it is really good. Thanks for sharing it!
    October 8, 2012 at 4:20 pm
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  21. Tenderly
    I love it when people make this but I can never have it. I'm allergic to coconut. Consider making it without coconut if you are going to a party. You'd be surprised how many people are actually allergic. I like to volunteer to make it and I bring a little container of coconut because someone will usually say, "Oh, I love this. Wait! Who forgot to put in the coconut?" This way they can add their own.
    March 29, 2013 at 11:40 pm
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  25. Melody
    I actually made Watergate salad for the first time the other day (coconut flakes, cottage cheese, pistachio pudding packet, cool whip, crushed pineapple, walnuts, cherries, etc). It was AMAZING! This recipe reminds me of it. A slightly healthier version (wouldn't be as creamy as yours) is to just add tons of fruit and throw in 2 Tbsp of dry vanilla pudding mix. It makes a delicious glaze with the juices of the fruits, and it's not too sweet. Perfect for breakfast OR Dessert OR a side! Enjoy!
    June 18, 2013 at 2:58 am
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  27. Robert
    My grandmother and mom often made this at Christmas when growing up. It was a universal tradition. I believe I will prepare it for our Christmas celebration this year. Oh yeah, do not ruin the recipe with Cool Whip, which is anything but "cool"! That concoction is nothing but a lot of chemicals I can't even pronounce. Use the sour cream. The fruit is the sweetener. Happy Holidays!
    November 14, 2013 at 6:53 pm
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    • Judy Walzer
      I was looking up this recipe on line cause I couldn't find it in any of my cookbooks and I have quite a few. It just so happens that I found it here on sixsisters site, here on the internet, so I scrolled through the different comments and variations of this recipe, and I came across your comment that your grandmother and mom used to make what we called 5 cup salad for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Just so happens My Grandmother and Mom made the exact same 5 cup salad for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I have a brother named Robert who lives in Michigan, and I live in the Seattle area, you wouldn't happen to have a sister named Judy? If so then this is probably my brother Robert across the miles. This was always a favorite of my family ,and I come from a very large family. My Grandmother probably made this x 5.
      December 25, 2017 at 8:41 am
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  31. Cherry Davis
    I was looking in my cabinet. Just standing there looking t what was there and saw a can of Mandarin Oranges and thought Oh I know what I'll do, make a 5 cup salad. It's been years since I made one, Had to look it up to see what I needed, Happily I have every thing . It will be a surprise for my daughter, It was her favorite when she was a child She will be happy if her taste has not changed.
    March 1, 2016 at 7:25 am
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  32. Judy Walzer
    The best old time recipe still sought after to this day. I will be making this for the first time for my man of 15 years and I know it will become one of his favorites too! I will be sticking to the traditional way using Mandarin oranges, pineapple chunks, marshmallows, coconut, and sour cream. That's the way I remember it, and I couldn't get enough. Love it!!! Judy
    December 25, 2017 at 8:48 am
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    • Cyd
      Sounds like you will be better off finding a new salad recipe. Here are a few ideas that are popular on our blog - https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/grape-salad-recipe/ https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/5-minute-jello-salad/ https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/easy-ambrosia-fruit-salad/ https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/progressive-dinner-project-mixed-berry/
      March 20, 2018 at 2:12 pm
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