Green Jello Salad is an amazing no-bake dessert or snack for spring, summer, fall, or winter! This creamy lime jello salad is mixed with pineapples and cream cheese and a perfect vintage recipe for the holidays.
The holidays are coming, and this time of year makes me dream of this Green Jello Salad! This “salad” is packed with marshmallows, pineapple, whipped cream, cherries, and pecans for the best vintage dessert.
This side dish was at every holiday meal my mom was involved in. She loved it and if no one else was making it, you were guaranteed she would.
Sometimes, she would sub the lime flavor and make a cherry or cranberry Jello salad. You can use any flavor you want in this recipe!
Ingredients
- Milk
- Marshmallows
- Lime jello
- Cream cheese
- Crushed pineapple
- Whipped cream
- Mayonnaise
- Maraschino cherries
- Pecans
When I was younger I preferred my jello salad with pecans in it, and surprise cream cheese chunks that didn’t completely dissolve into the mix. Keep your mixture with just a few cream cheese lumps for this delicious texture.
How to Make Jello Salad
- First, heat your milk and marshmallows in a pan until they’ve almost melted but not quite.
- Then, add the jello to a mixing bowl and mix in the warm marshmallow mixture. Mix everything together and let it cool a bit.
- Now, add the cream cheese and whisk it all together!
- Next, add the canned pineapple — juice and all! — to the mix with the cherries, whipped cream, mayo, and pecans.
- Finally, smooth jello salad into your favorite serving piece and refrigerate until firm. Serve chilled and enjoy!
This side dish is amazing with a traditional Christmas ham. I love to slather this all over the ham and eat it until I’m sick.
History of Jello Salad
Don’t let the name fool you. This is not a normal salad, but a green dessert salad to eat on the side during lunch or dinner.
Jello salads were first popularized in the 1960s as any combination of gelatin, fruit, and often carrots. We ditched the veggies for this version but the rest stayed the same.
My grandmother frequently made this for me during Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
That’s the only time I like to eat this salad. However, this was usually the highlight of my Thanksgiving meal. This recipe was handed down from my grandma, then to my mom, to me.
My grandma traditionally did not use the Maraschino cherries, but they can be a fun mix. I have also seen a recipe before where pecans can be added to the mix.
What to Serve with Jello Salad
Since this salad doesn’t have the nutritional value of a traditional salad, you’ll want to serve this Jello Salad with a regular meal that needs something sweet on the side.
If you’re going with the Cranberry Jello Salad option, ditch the cranberry sauce this Thanksgiving and serve this instead! It also goes great with my Simple Turkey Dressing.
And as always, there’s no Thanksgiving without a Southern Pecan Pie! Consider this one your real dessert after the fruity jello salad.
MORE HOLIDAY RECIPES YOUR GUEST WILL LOVE
- Cornbread Stuffing
- Party Cheese Spread
- Beef Salad
- Cherry Delight
- Sugar Cream Pie
- Sweet Potatoes and Killer Bee Honey
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Green Jello Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 16 regular sized marshmallows big ones but not the giant campfire ones
- 1 3-ounce package Lime Jell-O
- 6 ounces cream cheese cut into small cubes
- 1 20-ounce can crushed pineapple
- ½ cup whipped cream use Dream Whip if available
- ⅔ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup Maraschino cherries halved, optional
- 1 cup chopped pecans optional
Instructions
- Heat milk and marshmallows in a sauce pan over low heat until the marshmallows are almost melted.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the lime Jello package. Pour the warm milk and marshmallow mixture over the Jello powder. Mix well and allow to cool slightly.
- Add the cream cheese and whisk or use an electric hand mixer until small bits of cream cheese are all that is left.
- Add the pineapple with juice and Maraschino cherries.
- Add whipped cream, mayo, and pecans.
- Place into a container and refrigerate until firm.
