Creamy Cranberry Salad with Fruit and Nuts

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 0 mins

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 6 Servings

Cranberry salad is the retro dish you’ll want to add to your holiday lineup this year. It’s recipe nostalgia at its finest, complete with fruit, mini marshmallows, and nuts, all tied together with heaps of soft whipped cream. At first I was skeptical about the merits of this cranberry fluff salad, but in all honesty, after the first bite, I was hooked. The tart cranberries are balanced by the sugar and other ingredients in the salad, but the salad isn’t overly sweet. Plus, you really can’t go wrong with copious amounts of whipped cream. I especially love that while it’s called a salad, it’s really a dessert in disguise that you get a free pass to add to your plate during the main course.

Ingredients

1 (12-ounce) bag fresh or thawed frozen cranberries (about 3 cups)
1 (about 8-ounce) can crushed pineapple in juice
6 ounces seedless green grapes (1 small bunch)
3 cups miniature marshmallows
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup raw pecan halves
1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream

Instructions

Coarsely chop 1 (12-ounce) bag fresh or thawed frozen cranberries. (Alternatively, pulse in a food processor with the blade attachment until coarsely chopped, about 6 (1-second) pulses.) Transfer to a large bowl.
Prepare the following, adding each to the bowl of cranberries as it is completed: Drain 1 (about 8-ounce) can crushed pineapple through a fine-mesh strainer. Halve 6 ounces green seedless grapes until you have 1 cup.
Add 3 cups miniature marshmallows and 3/4 cup granulated sugar to the bowl and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate until the sugar is dissolved, at least 4 hours or up to overnight. Meanwhile, coarsely chop 1 cup raw pecan halves. Place in a medium frying pan over medium heat and toast until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and let cool completely.
When ready to serve, place 1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream in the bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl if using an electric hand mixer or whisking by hand). Beat with the whisk attachment on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes.
Add the whipped cream and 3/4 cup of the pecans to the cranberry mixture and fold until combined. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve, up to 1 day. Garnish with the remaining 1/4 cup pecans before serving.