The classic side salad that's made with just 6 ingredients including pineapple, pistachio pudding mix, marshmallows, maraschino cherries, pecans, and whipped topping! A one-bowl, stir-together, 5-minute recipe that's perfect for casual events, parties, and family dinners.
Prep Time5 minutesmins
Chill Time1 hourhr
Total Time1 hourhr5 minutesmins
Course: Sides, Salads & Vegetables
Cuisine: American
Keyword: ambrosia pistachio salad, green salad with marshmallows, pistachio fruit salad, pistachio marshmallow salad, pistachio pudding fruit salad, pistachio pudding salad, watergate salad
Servings: 10
Calories: 382kcal
Author: Averie Sunshine
Ingredients
20-ouncecan crushed pineapple with juicedo not drain
two 3.4 ounce packages pistachio instant pudding mixnot cook 'n serve
1 ½cupsminiature marshmallows
1cupmaraschino cherrieshalved; plus a few more whole cherries for garnishing
⅔cuppecanslightly chopped (walnuts may be substituted; or omit the nuts if preferred)
16ouncesCool Whip or similar whipped toppingthawed (2 standard sized tubs)
Instructions
To a large bowl, add the pineapple with juice, the instant pistachio pudding mix, and stir to combine. Note - you are not making pudding here; just add the dry pudding mix and stir it with the pineapple and juice.
Add the marshmallows, cherries (Tip - don't get too much cherry juice into the bowl because when mixed with the green pudding, the color will become less pretty), pecans, and stir to combine.
Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
Before serving, garnish with a few whole cherries and additional pecans, if desired. Watergate salad will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 3 days although will deflate and be more watery as time passes. I recommend making it 1 to 4 hours before you plan to serve it.
Notes
* I suggest using regular full-fat Cool Whip or Light, but not Fat-Free. Because the fat creates the fluffiness which is a hallmark of Watergate salad. Also I have found that the brand name Cool Whip tends to be a bit fluffier than store brands or generic brands from my personal experience.