This Cranberry Fluff salad recipe combines cranberries, crushed pineapple, and mini marshmallows all folded together in a sweet, cream cheese mixture. It’s perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas as an easy side or light dessert!
It’s practically a law that cranberry fluff must be served at Thanksgiving and Christmas, right? Well, it should be! Surely your grandmother used to make it. This recipe is old-school, dating back years, along with the best jello mold recipes. Some foods are just timeless.
What is Cranberry Fluff?
Also known as cranberry fluff salad, cranberry cheesecake fluff, or just cranberry salad, this is a classic side dish or dessert, usually served at holiday time. It’s very similar to Watergate salad or ambrosia, incorporating fruit, marshmallows, and a whipped cream base that holds it all together.
Cranberry Fluff Recipe
When recipes like this have been around for such a long time, naturally there will be a million different variations. I’ve seen it made with different fruits, nuts, and usually with Cool Whip. This is my favorite way to make it! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Fresh cranberries
- Granulated sugar
- Powdered sugar
- Cream cheese, softened
- Heavy whipping cream
- Vanilla
- Crushed pineapple, drained
- Mini marshmallows
How Do You Make Cranberry Fluff?
It’s so incredibly easy to make this. Here’s a brief rundown (scroll down for the detailed printable recipe card.)
Mulch those cranberries – in a food processor, blend together the cranberries and granulated sugar until very well chopped (but not pureed.)
Make the cream mixture – with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth, then add in the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla; whip until stiff peaks form.
Fold everything together – fold the mulched cranberries and crushed pineapple in with the cream cheese mixture until well combined. Then fold in the marshmallows.
Cover and chill – cover the mixture and chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.
Recipe Variations
- You can add in a bit of chopped pecans or walnuts for some crunch.
- Frozen cranberries can be used, but thaw them and remove any excess moisture.
- Thawed Cool Whip can replace the whipped cream and powdered sugar.
- If you’ve got the time, you can let the chopped cranberries and sugar mixture sit for a few hours, which helps the cranberries sweeten. I’ve never really found this necessary, though, since the sweetness of the pineapple, powdered sugar, and cream cheese balance out the tartness fine. Try it both ways and you decide!
Making Ahead and Storing Leftovers
Can you make cranberry fluff ahead of time? You can make this cranberry fluff salad recipe up to 2 days ahead of time. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Make sure to stir it again before serving.
Can you freeze cranberry fluff? This particular recipe does not freeze well due to the real whipped cream. Once thawed, it deflates and becomes watery.
Watch it Being Made
Similar Recipes To Try!
- Creamy Waldorf Salad
- Classic Pea Salad
- Pumpkin Fluff
Other Cranberry Recipes
- {Upside Down} Cranberry Cake
- Cranberry Sauce
- Cranberry Honey Butter
I hope you love this delicious and simple recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Cranberry Fluff
Ingredients
- 12 ounce package fresh cranberries
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 8 ounces cream cheese , softened
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 8 ounce can crushed pineapple , drained
- 2 cups mini marshmallows
Instructions
- Add the cranberries and granulated sugar to bowl of a food processor and pulse until they are very well chopped, but not completely pureed. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add in the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla; whip until stiff peaks form.
- Fold in the chopped cranberries and crushed pineapple; mix well until combined.
- Fold in marshmallows.
- Cover and refrigerate for a couple hours or overnight.
- Give it a gentle stir, serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Other Notes
We all really loved the dessert!
Excellent!
I made this for the first time Thanksgiving 2023 and it’s now on my menu for both Christmas and Thanksgiving. My family loves it!
My family and I love this recipe. It is a dessert that is most requested at my school potluck as well. I love your recipes and content!
This looks amazing and I have ingredients to make it. How does it keep in refrigerator? Can I make two days ahead? Thanks
Yes, all storage information is included in the article, as mentioned in the recipe card notes. Enjoy!
Fabulous! While some members of my family love the canned cranberry jelly, I prefer an alternative. This was delicious last year and I can’t wait to make it this Thanksgiving so my sweet granddaughter can try it too!
Fed this to the family last year at Thanksgiving after seeing you make it on TikTok. So delicious! Everyone loved it!!
I saw you on Tiktok and found your website. I just made this cranberry fluff and I made your hasbrown breakfast casserole for breakfast. They were both so amazing! I hate eggs but I still loved the breakfast casserole. I can’t wait for everyone to try the cranberry fluff at our Thanksgiving dinner this afternoon!
How much cool whip, do you think, if wanting to substitute?
You can replace the whipped cream and powdered sugar with an 8 ounce tub of thawed cool whip.
I made this last year for Thanksgiving and couldn’t get enough. I have looking forward to making and enjoying this year. This is served alongside our standard cranberry dish.
Yum, so so delicious! The tartness of the cranberries with the sweet pineapple and creamy whip is the perfect combination! Will definitely make again!
Easy & delicious!
Best new recipe this year for our family
LIFE-CHANGING RECIPE…I’m not even a huge fan of cranberries but this stuff is A-MAZ-ING!!! So good and perfect tart/sweet partner for a rich Thanksgiving meal or any other day of the year.
So easy, delicious and petty. My family loved it.
I was out of cranberries and substituted a can of cherry pie filling from the dollar tree. It was great. Also ,I use cool whip all the time ,cheaper.
I do not have a food processor. Is there another way I can prep the cranberries? Thank you
If you have a powerful blender, that could probably work.
I don’t have a good processor either so I actually made a cranberry sauce using the same amount of sugar (3/4 cup), used 1/2 cup of the reserved Pineapple juice, plus 1/2 cup of water boiled all of that on the stove for about 10 minutes until all the cranberries popped and smashed them up finely. Let that cool completely and then followed the recipe as shown and folded it all together. SOOOO GOOD!!