Strawberries & Cream Salad
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Sweet strawberries paired with a creamy, vanilla flavored base. Strawberries & Cream Salad is an easy make ahead dish.
I’ve got a pretty little pink number to share with you today. Just in time for Valentine’s Day.
It’s also a fabulous addition to your Easter, Mother’s Day and Christmas meals.
And potluck parties. This dish comes back home empty. Every single time.
Or make Strawberries & Cream Salad any time you need a tasty side dish.
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Strawberries & Cream Salad
I like to incorporate red, pink and heart-themed elements into special Valentine meals for The Teens.
Heart-shaped pizzas have always been a hit in my house.
And how about pink, heart-shaped pancakes for the win?
If you need a little inspiration this year, my Valentine’s Day Pinterest board is filled with ideas.
Strawberries & Cream Salad is a cheerful addition to any holiday or summer meal. The vibrant pink color makes it an obvious choice for Valentine’s Day. But it also complements Easter & Mother’s Day tables. Or truly any meal. A side dish this yummy should be enjoyed any time you crave a burst of Spring or Summer.
And the taste? Divine! Reminds me of a big bowl of strawberries and cream. The strawberry flavor is bright and refreshing. Like a creamy, dreamy spoonful of sunshine in every bite. Adios Winter!
Sometimes I like to experiment with family favorite recipes. I’m not trying to improve upon the recipe. It’s more of an attempt to discover new flavor profiles in a dish my family enjoys.
No need to reinvent the wheel every time. I also enjoy adapting recipes to utilize seasonal ingredients.
*** Pin the Strawberries & Cream Salad Recipe for Later ***
A few years ago I wanted to take advantage of the Spring berries hitting the grocery store shelves. And I needed a pretty dish for Easter dinner.
And so Strawberries & Cream Salad was created. The result of tinkering around with a long time family favorite, Orange Jello Salad (it’s one of the first recipes I shared here). You must love Orange Salad as much as my family does because it’s still one of the Top 5 recipes on the blog.
Need another reason to love Strawberries & Cream Salad? The base mixture can be prepared the evening before the big meal. All that’s left is to combine the base mixture with the Cool Whip the day of the big meal. Easy peasy!
The vanilla pudding and Cool Whip give the Strawberries & Cream Salad a velvety texture, similar to a mousse. So dreamy! While you could serve this as a dessert, I prefer to serve it as a side dish with the meal. It’s a Midwestern thing to serve a jell-o salad with the meal. And serving as a side dish allows you to have a proper piece of cake or pie for dessert.
You’ll want to keep a couple things in mind when making Strawberries & Cream Salad. First, you must use cook & serve pudding mix. Instant pudding mix does not work in this recipe. Second, I recommend adding the fresh strawberries shortly before serving.
Work Smarter: the right tools can make or break your cooking experience. These are the tools I used to make quick work of this recipe.
Mix it up – ideal size for sauces and dressings. Dishwasher safe with a sealed barrel.
Handheld masher – I use this to combine the cooled Jell-o mixture with the Cool Whip.
Pyrex dishes – I use the larger dish for cooling the cooked mixture in this recipe.
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I’ve linked this recipe at the following parties: Meal Plan Monday, Weekend Potluck.
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More Vintage Fruit Salad Recipes:
- Creamy Grape Salad
- Summer Berry Cheesecake Salad
- Ambrosia Salad with Cool Whip
- Mom’s Creamy New York Fruit Salad
- Cousin Betty’s Pistacchio Pudding
Strawberries and Cream Salad
Ingredients
- 1 6 oz strawberry gelatin
- 2 3 oz cook & serve vanilla pudding mix
- 4 cups hot water
- 8 oz. Cool Whip, thawed
- 1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, diced
Instructions
- Combine strawberry jell-o mix, vanilla pudding mixes and hot water in a large saucepan.
- Bring mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Continue boiling (and stirring) until mixture turns clear.
- Pour into dish or bowl and chill until set. I usually make the night before and chill overnight.
- Combine Cool Whip with jell-o/pudding mixture (a potato masher works well for this step).
- Add diced strawberries immediately before serving. Stir gently to combine.
- Refrigerate leftovers.
Notes
- Instant pudding mix will not work with this recipe.
- Nutritional information is provided as a reference only.
Nutritional Estimate
Nutritional information is provided as a reference, using an online calculator. We recommend verifying the information independently for accuracy.
I made this for Easter 2023 and it was a big hit. I did also have requests to share the recipe. One thing I found helpful to determine if the mix was clear was with the liquid in a big spoon. You could really tell the clarity that way. This will be on my go to list for a long time! Thanks for sharing!
I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe, Rita! It’s still one of my favorites, too.
Is it 1 box of 6oz strawberry gelatin and 2 boxes 3oz pudding?
Yes! As a side note, I have made this with 1 large pudding and 2 small gelatins and it’s turned out OK, too.
This sounds delicious! Can I substitute real whipped cream for the cool whip?
You can use fresh whipped cream but I would wait until you’re ready to serve before adding to the salad. The salad won’t keep as long because the whipped cream will break down quickly.
Hi Lori, I’m not much of a cook but this recipe sounded to easy to not try at least. I have to say that my mixture of jello and pudding and 4 cups of water never did turn clear, if by clear you meant being able to see the bottom of the pan through the liquid. I took it off the burner when I noticed that I had lost about a half an inch of the mix due to evaporation. I just put it into the frig so can’t tell if i screwed it up or not but i was afraid i was going to burn it if I lost much more. the mixture had the consistency of syrup when I poured it into the bowl. What do you think?
You won’t be able to see the bottom of the pan but you will notice the mixture is no longer cloudy. I can’t say for certain but it should be OK. You may need to adjust the amount of whipped topping.
Delicious! Great summertime and holiday side!
So glad you enjoyed it, Christina!
Just need a little more clarification. Mix both the jello AND pudding mixes in one pot and add water and bring to a boil. But then your step 2 says…Bring mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Continue boiling (and stirring) until mixture turns clear. How can it turn clear with the pudding in the same pot?
Yes, combine the jello & pudding mix and bring to a boil. When you initially combine the pudding mix with the jello, the mixture is “cloudy”. As it cooks you will see a noticeable difference in appearance as it changes to a “clear” appearance. I hope this helps!
Don’t have a potato masher. Can I just use a mixer or food processor
If you don’t have a potato masher just use a fork.
Me again. I reread the recipe. do you put both 3 oz. pudding into the jello and let set and then add coolwhip before serving.
Hi Glenda! Yes, combine all the pudding & jell-o mixes with the water prior to cooking. After the pudding/jell-o mixture has cooled & set-up overnight, you can then add the Cool Whip. I hope this helps.
thank you, yes that explains it well.
I am a little confused with the cool whip and vanilla pudding. do I mix the box of pudding mixture into the cool whip or do I cook the pudding per instructions and then add it to the cool whip. to me that is a lot of pudding with the jello. You just state pudding mixture. so it could mean the box of pudding or mix the pudding per instruction. let me know. it doesn’t explain per step to well.
I love this salad and my family loves it, great recipe! Thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday for the party this week. Hope you have a great week and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
What is a mix it up tool? I am not familiar with that name. Do yuo mean an immersion blender, an egg beater, whisk????
Hi Nana! I use a whisk when mixing the pudding, jello-o and water for this recipe. I linked to my favorite one in the post.
I can not figure out where I go to get the recipe. Is it a secret?
Hi Kelley. Scroll to the bottom of the post for the recipe card.
Thank you so much. I found it……..
This is a “comfort dessert” for sure! My ex-mother-in-law has been making this basic dessert for about 50 years or so except she has always added angel food or pound cake. Just proves that great minds ….. !
Oh my word, adding angel food cake sounds divine! Thanks for sharing Suzanne!
Can sugar-free jello n pudding be used?
I haven’t made it with sugar-free mixes but I think it would be fine. You may need to adjust the amount of water based on the package sizes. I’d love to hear your results if you give it a try, Linda.
Hi Arlie! Scroll to the bottom of the post for the recipe card.
Where is the recipe? I can’t find it.
Hi Geri! The recipe card is at the bottom of the post.
Great recipe
Thanks Liz!