Coconut Ambrosia Salad

  4.6 – 283 reviews  • Dessert Salad Recipes

This fantastic “got everything in the house” meal is delicious and filling! This recipe is extremely adaptable. I have used a variety of various items in their place, including cheese soup, yams, and corn. Everything tastes delicious!

Prep Time: 10 mins
Additional Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins
Servings: 12
Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
  2. 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
  3. 3 ½ cups frozen whipped topping, thawed
  4. 2 cups shredded coconut
  5. 2 cups miniature marshmallows
  6. ½ cup milk
  7. 1 cup maraschino cherries

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, combine the oranges, pineapple, whipped topping, coconut, marshmallows and milk.
  2. Mix together well and chill 1 hour before serving. Garnish with cherries.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 195 kcal
Carbohydrate 31 g
Cholesterol 1 mg
Dietary Fiber 2 g
Protein 1 g
Saturated Fat 7 g
Sodium 48 mg
Sugars 18 g
Fat 7 g
Unsaturated Fat 0 g

Reviews

Lisa Burton
I thought it was very good, light and refreshing. I substituted the maraschino cherries with fresh Mandarin oranges as a garnish on top. Loving It!!!
John King
This is what I remember from when I was young. Except for the whipped cream measurement, which I think is off. It states 3 1/2 cups but a cup is 8 oz. and I used 2 8 oz. containers of whipped topping. It was too much and I should have added more pineapple (even though I used a 10oz. can, and more manadarin oranges. (also used a larger can) Even though I think it’s great, my family said it was too much whipped cream and too sweet. I’d make some adjustments next time.
Jerry Austin
I did not put the milk & cherries in. I added the following: l large cottage cheese (small curd) 1 cup sour cream 1 cup crushed walnuts 1 pkg pistacchio jello Mixed well with electric mixer (this chops the oranges evenly)
Samantha Pennington
James Campbell
I doubled the recipe and made this for thirty people at a baby shower – it was a huge hit! There were NO leftovers! I took the advice of many other reviewers added pecans and apples (with skins – and no celery!), added red and green grapes, strained the canned fruit overnight, added a large box of pistachio instant pudding to the whipped topping and no milk – made it very thick and creamy, not runny at all, and the colors of the fruit looked great – together it was a perfect combination! It was so simple. You can’t go wrong with this recipe – add any fresh fruit you want (except raspberries or bananas – ask me how i know haha).
Christine Douglas
I have made this salad for 30+ years with a few additions to my version. I skip the milk and use one can condensed milk, and one can cherry pie filling. This is such a popular salad everyone loves it and often is eaten as desert, skipping the pumpkin pie after dinner.
Deborah Williams
Delicious recipe. Have done it multiple times. I added sliced almonds. Perfection. Many compliments. Great for any occasion. Must try.
Amanda Martinez
Tasted great while making. My marshmallows were dried out.Oopsie, added extra milk and let them sit before adding the rest. This is a keeper.
Christopher Gonzalez
I did it according to the recipe and it came out perfect, delicious! Thank you!
Elizabeth Waters
Doubled the fruit, used 1/2 sour cream instead of milk, 1 cup of coconut and it was delicious!
Keith Hopkins
This wasn’t bad but I don’t think it deserved 5 stars. I feel like it needed more fruit.
Alicia Kim
I would use less coconut, but otherwise it was delicious!
Margaret West
I make this every year the only thing I do differently is add a half a pack to 3/4 a pack of Jell-O in orange or red not cherry usually strawberry yummy yummy yummy…
Kaitlin Gonzalez
Delicious!!! Drained fruit overnight. Added red and green grapes and chopped pecans. Big hit at graduation party. !! Even the other moms who bring the great dishes loved it! Will make it often????
Kevin Davis
Very good, just too many cherries, I would cut that in half next time.
Elizabeth Rogers
Love it! Will make it again for sure!
Heather Singleton
My boyfriend mentioned his mom always had this on the table for Thanksgiving, so I looked for a recipe to make it for him… this is delicious! He said it was just like his mom’s & gave me a huge smile! I am adding this as a staple to our holiday tradition!
Emily Mcdonald
I loved this recipe with the previously suggested additions: 1 cup chopped pecans, 1 diced green apple with skin on (both added a nice crunch and the apple helped cut sweetness), 1 (15 oz) can of fruit cocktail for more volume, 1 (3.4 oz) box of pistachio instant pudding, and I replaced the milk with 1/2 cup of sour cream. I’m glad I used unsweetened coconut flakes and I would try toasting them next time. The only part I’d change is I’d carefully monitor the ratio of whipped cream to fruit as I folded the cream in. I used 1 (8 oz) tub of whipped topping and my family felt it was too much. After draining the canned fruit I added it all together in a vegetable steamer which I’d placed inside a larger glass bowl. I sealed it and let the fruit continue draining overnight. This helped a lot.
Carrie Decker
I love this salad but my recipe has the following changes: Add 1 package of frozen stawberries drained, add 1 cup of green seedless grapes substitute sour cream instead of milk. Enjoy!
Travis Smith
With or without the cinnamon and nutmeg, the recipeis decent. it is decent. why do the others want to add sour cream? makes it taste expired. this is great. I used 12 oz mandarin orange, 12 oz CRUSHED pineapple (better than chunck) 1.5 cups coconut, large whipped cream, 6 oz cherries.
Breanna Smith DDS
Great salad. I followed other suggestions and substituted sour cream for the milk. I also added 1 cup of grapes and I used colored marshmallows. I went with pineapple tidbits instead of crushed and let the fruit drain for a few hours. I used 2 cups of sweetened shredded coconut but I found that it was maybe a little too much. Next time I will try 1 cup of coconut instead.

 

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