Cranberry Jello salad is the perfect dish to serve with turkey and more. You only need 3 ingredients to make this sweet and delicious jello salad.
Cranberry jello salad Recipe
This congealed salad is the perfect blend of sweet and tart and super easy. We love to make it for Thanksgiving and Christmas for a quick and easy side dish. It is the perfect compliment for turkey and stuffing.
My kids aren’t huge fans of traditional homemade cranberry sauce but they absolutely love this cranberry salad. They are always excited to see it on our holiday table.
We top it with whipped cream and it is the best! Learn how to make homemade whipped cream. You might also like our cranberry relish. However you have your cranberry jello salad, you will love how easy it is to make.
Easy Cranberry Pineapple Jello Salad
Once you start making this easy salad, your friends and family will ask for it again and again. It is one of those dishes that just makes it feel like the holidays when you see it on the table. It is a easy family recipe.
You have to try this easy recipe! Someone in my family always makes it for our Christmas dinner. Not only is it easy to make but you don’t have to bake it.
Ingredients:
- Raspberry Gelatin – The main ingredient is this raspberry gelatin. But the name from the salad comes from the Cranberry Sauce. The raspberry jello combines perfectly with other ingredients.
- Crushed Pineapple in Juice – Do not skip on this ingredients. It provides the perfect texture that is needed for this recipe. Remember do not drain the juice from the crushed pineapple.
- Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce – Ever wonder what the canned cranberry sauce is used for? This is probably the main dish that we use it for.
It is that simple. Just 3 ingredients. The recipe is super easy.
How to make cranberry jello salad:
- First spray a 9 inch square pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Second, get out a medium bowl and put the raspberry gelatin inside.
- Then you will boil the water. You can boil the water on the stove or in the microwave.
- Add a cup of the boiling water to the raspberry gelatin and whisk constantly for 2 minutes until the jello is completely dissolved.
- Once everything is dissolved, stir in ½ cup of cold water.
- Next, stir in the crushed pineapple with the juice and the cranberry sauce.
- Make sure everything is well combined and pour the mixture into the pan you prepared earlier.
- Finally, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it until the jello has set. It should be firm.
- It needs to be refrigerated for a minimum of 6 hours or up to 3 days before.
We love to serve it with with fresh cranberries and whipped cream. Not only does it look so pretty and festive but it tastes delicious.
Can I add any fruit to this salad?
There are certain fresh fruit that can’t be added to this salad because of a chemical reaction that will happen. Here are some fresh fruit that I would avoid.
- Fresh Pineapple
- Kiwi
- Fresh Mango
Variations for Cranberry Jello Salad:
We love recipes that you add or change the ingredients on what you have at home. Here are some of our favorites to this recipe:
- Add in apple chunks – Traditionally this recipe calls for apple chunks. It is really easy to add in apples. Just chop up an apple, you can peel it or leave the skin on. It is completely up to you.
- Adding in walnuts is how I remember this recipe growing up. Again, this is definitely up to you and this jello salad is just as good without them.
How to store:
Keep the dish covered with plastic wrap. It should be stored in the fridge until ready to enjoy. This is one of those dishes that you can make ahead to save time. So many recipes during the holidays require being made the same day but this isn’t one of them.
You can save time and make this up to 3 days in advance. I actually think it is better made in advance.
Can this jello salad be frozen?
You definitely can freeze this salad but we have found that the the flavor and texture changes a bit. So we just try and make it ahead of time and it turns out so good.
I like to make things easy especially during the holidays, so I make a list of items that I can make ahead of time and this is one of them.
Tips for cranberry pineapple jello salad:
- You can also prepare this recipe in a 6 cup gelatin mold. Place the mixture in the gelatin mold and refrigerate.
- To release it from the gelatin mold, place the bottom 2/3 of the mold in hot water for about 30 seconds. Then flip the open part of the mold until a serving platter. Refrigerate the jello salad on the plate until you are ready to serve.
- Whipped cream is optional but it definitely makes this recipe even better! Plus, it looks so pretty when serving. We normally top each serving with whipped cream but another option is to spread it all over the top of the baking dish. You can do this right before serving.
- I like to make this a few days in advance. It gives it time for the flavors to blend and it also saves time during the holidays. You can make it up to 3 days before you are ready to serve it.
Cranberry Pineapple jello salad recipe is the best!
If you are looking for a simple side for Thanksgiving dinner, this easy salad is delicious. A lot of jello salads include cream cheese but this easy salad does not and only has 3 simple ingredients.
The crushed pineapple with the raspberry jello and whole berry cranberry sauce combines for the best salad!
It is so versatile and you can use a baking dish or a jello mold. Make this today and taste how amazing it is.
I bet it will become one of your favorite jello recipes.
Print Recipe here for Cranberry Jello Salad:
Cranberry Jello Salad
Ingredients
- 2 boxes Raspberry Gelatin 3 oz. each
- 1 can of Crushed Pineapple in Juice 20 oz., do not drain
- 1 can of Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce 14 oz.
Instructions
- Spray a 9 inch square pan with a non-stick cooking spray.
- Place the raspberry gelatin in a medium size bowl. Add in 1 cup of boil water and whisk constantly for 2 minutes until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Then stir in ½ cup of cold water.
- Then stir in the crushed pineapple with the juice and the cranberry sauce.
- Then pour the mixture into the 9 inch pan, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it until it’s firm.
- Refrigerate for a minimum of 6 hours or up to 3 days before.
- Serve topped with fresh cranberries and reddi-whip if you prefer and enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
More Thanksgiving recipes to make:
- Corn casserole
- Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
- Green Bean Casserole
- Mandarin Orange Jello Salad Recipe
- Try one of our 50 Easy Thanksgiving Dinner Recipes
More easy cranberry recipes:
- Broccoli Cranberry Salad
- Cranberry Orange Crock Pot Pork Tenderloin Recipe
- Easy Cranberry Orange Bread Recipe
C an you use mandarin oranges,,,dont care for pineapples in the cranberry jello salad~~~
Yes, I think that mandarin oranges would be delicious in this recipe.
What size of pan would you use if you were going to double the recipe ?
Love this recipe. Totally can be used in place of the one I always use with fresh cranberries which are seasonal. I make this like ten times a year and freeze fresh cranberries – now I can use this!! Plus this over has less sugar!! Thank you
I’ll be making this for Thanksgiving. I always male some kind of jello salad. I may add chopped nuts to it.
My mother-in-law thinks i cant cook..lol i cant wait to make the cranberry salad and the deviled eggs.
I make mine with Mandarin oranges, drained crushed pineapple, celery, nuts, and cherry jello. After the Jello sets I mix in 8 oz tub of Cool Whip Whip cream. I grew up with this jello, and instead of canned cranberry sauce I crush fresh cranberries. I guess it could taste the same if I used canned cranberry sauce. Maybe I can try this year. Happy Holidays
Just finished making this yummy concoction! I added mandarin oranges along with pineapple and cranberry sauce. Going to add a cream cheese and sour cream topping. Thanks for sharing your scrumptious recipe! I also put it in a larger container.
I forgot to add my 5 star rating!
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