Fruity Cream Salad

You're going to love this fruit salad!  It uses both canned and freeze-dried fruit along with a few other pantry-friendly ingredients, so it can be your go-to fruit salad in a pinch. 

I am putting together a 21-Day Pantry-Friendly Meal Plan which I will share with you in November!  I'm finding recipes (and sharing them here at the blog) that use only ingredients which store well in a pantry.  This is great in case of emergency (big storm, COVID-19 panic-buying) but also fantastic to have on hand just in case (totally forgot about the potluck tonight).

I wanted to incorporate plenty of fruits and vegetables in my Plan, and I discovered I was a little short on fruit recipes that are pantry-friendly.  I created this recipe from two others with some pantry-friendly substitutions.  And I have to say, I love it.  There is such a wide variety of fruit in this creamy mixture that it really hits the spot.

FRUITY CREAM SALAD

PREP TIME:  15 minutes
REFRIGERATION TIME:  at least 2 hours

INGREDIENTS

• 15 oz. fruit cocktail, drained
• 8 oz. crushed pineapple, drained
• 1/2 c. freeze-dried raspberries (I like these, but you can also get them here and here.)*
• 1/2 c. freeze-dried strawberry slices (I like these, but you can also get them here and here.)*
• 21 oz. cherry pie filling 
• 1 envelope Dream Whip mix
• 12 oz. evaporated milk
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla (optional; or try almond flavoring)

DIRECTIONS

Combine the evaporated milk, Dream Whip, and vanilla in a large salad bowl.  Whip with a mixer on high speed for 5 minutes or until thickened.  Fold in all the fruit until well-combined.  Refrigerate at least 2 hours to give the freeze-dried fruit time to soften. 

*When comparing freeze-dried fruit, the freeze-drying methods will vary and will have an effect on flavor, so see which you like best.  When comparing prices, don't forget that ThriveLife has a monthly delivery special which saves you 15%.  (See the sidebar.)  I am not a ThriveLife rep--I use it a lot and love it.

Try this recipe, then comment and let me know how you like it!  And Pin it to Pinterest to save and share using the image below.

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