Watergate Salad

Watergate salad, also known as Pistachio salad, Hawaiian Surprise or Pistachio Delight, is a sweet dessert salad developed by Kraft Foods in the 1970's. Watergate Salad is similar to Ambrosia Fruit Salad, since both recipes use canned fruit or fruit cocktail and/or mandarin oranges, mini marshmallows and whipped cream, and both are quick and easy to prepare.

So, how did Watergate Salad get its name? The answer to that question still remains a bit of a mystery. A Kraft Foods representative advised that Kraft developed the recipe for their Pistachio Pineapple Delight in 1975, however, they never referred to their salad as Watergate Salad until consumers started to request the recipe by that name. Some believe that a Chicago food editor renamed the pistachio salad as Watergate Salad in order to spark interest in her column when she printed the recipe. Others believe it's linked to the infamous American political scandal while still others attribute it to the Watergate Hotel. Despite the debate, the one thing everyone does agree on is that the Watergate Salad recipe is simply delicious!

Whether served as a dessert or a holiday dinner salad, Watergate Salad is sure to be a hit with the adults and children alike.

Watergate Salad

Ingredients:
2 cups JET-PUFFED Miniature Marshmallows
2 pkg. (4-serving size each) JELL-O Pistachio Instant Pudding
2 cans (14 fl oz/398mL each) crushed pineapple in juice, undrained
1 cup chopped pecans
3 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

Directions:
COMBINE marshmallows, dry pudding mix, pineapple and nuts in large bowl.

STIR in Cool Whip. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Enjoy!

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Ambrosia Fruit Salad

Ambrosia fruit salad is a popular variation of the traditional fruit salad and can easily do double duty as as side dish for a summertime barbeque or a light wintertime dessert. Most recipes for ambrosia fruit salad use whipped cream or sour cream, but in today's health-conscious society, the cream is often replaced by vanilla yogurt.

If time is not an issue, use fresh fruit (pineapple, banana, red and green grapes, or your choice of fruit), otherwise canned fruit will do the trick. Flaked coconut, walnuts and marshmallows are also generally used in the traditional Ambrosia fruit salad recipe.

Our Ambrosia fruit salad recipe is very forgiving and versatile, so feel free to substitute your favorite fruit (apples, grapes, bananas) to 'make this recipe your own'.

Ambrosia Fruit Salad

2 cans (11 oz) mandarin oranges, drained
2 cans (15 oz) fruit cocktail, drained
2 cups flaked or shredded coconut
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 can (8 oz) pineapple chunks, drained
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 jar (10 oz) maraschino cherries, drained (optional)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 container (8 oz) whipped cream, whipped

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl; chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

Enjoy!

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