This Cherry Jello Salad with mixed fruit is one of my family’s favorite recipes. It’s brimming with all kinds of fruit and is light and refreshing. It’s perfect for parties because it makes a bit batch.
Cherry Jello Salad
My mother in law made this easy Jello salad many years ago. It quickly became a family favorite that makes an appearance at all of our family dinners. This Cherry Jello Salad is so light and refreshing that it’s perfect for dessert, a side dish or even breakfast.
My mother-in-law was the one who introduced me to this easy jello salad recipes years ago. I’ve since tweaked her recipe just a bit to put my own spin on it.
One of my favorite things about it is the cherry pie filling keeps the gelatin from setting up completely. It gives it a beautiful texture where it’s not as jiggly as regular Jello but instead it’s soft and smooth.
And, let’s not forget about all of the gorgeous fruit. The flavors and textures are over the top!
What I love about this recipe is that it’s so versatile. You can have it as a side dish, a dessert or even breakfast, It’s also very light. So, if you’ve eaten a big meal, this is a light, refreshing alternative to heavy sweets.
One of the ways that I’ve adapted this recipe is to use sugar free gelatin and no-sugar-added fruits and pie filling. You get plenty of sweetness from the fresh fruits — you don’t even miss the extra sugar.
I always laugh when I make this recipe…when I was pregnant with my son, I was asked to make this for Thanksgiving. That time, I used navel oranges rather than mandarin. As soon as I started peeling the first one, and got a sniff of the orange, I instantly became obsessed with oranges. I ate all of the oranges before I could get them into the dish!
That meant that I made a late night trip to the grocery store to get more oranges. From that point forward, I had to have oranges all throughout my pregnancy. All of the time. Oranges and root beer. Oh, and tuna fish. What a combination, right? The entire time I was pregnant I craved all three of these things. It was the perfect meal!
Serving Ideas for this Fruit Jello Salad Recipes
- This makes a big batch. I usually serve it family style in my favorite serving bowl
.
- Sometimes, I serve this Cherry Jello Salad in individual antique fruit cup dishes (similar to these
).
- You can get fancy an arrange the fruit in pretty patterns on top of the jello. I like to do this with the berries.
More Easy Jello Salad Recipes
Items You Need to Make Cherry Jello Salad
- Large Glass Mixing Bowl
- Electric Kettle
- Apple Corer and Slicer
- Egg Slicer
(makes slicing fruit super easy)
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Cherry Jello Salad with Mixed Fruit
Ingredients
- 2 3 oz packages cherry Jello
- 2 cups boiling water
- 1 10 oz package frozen sliced strawberries
- 1 10 oz package frozen mixed berries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries
- 1 21 oz can cherry pie filling
- 1 20 oz can pineapple chunks - drained
- 1 15 oz can pear halves - drained and cut into chunks
- 1 15 oz can mandarin oranges - drained
- 2 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and chopped
- 3 bananas - sliced
Instructions
- In a large bowl, dissolve Jello in boiling water.
- Stir in the strawberries and mixed berries.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients.
- Cover and refrigerate for 3-4 hours before serving.
Nutrition
- Want to scale a recipe up or down? Simply type in a new serving amount and the recipe will automatically adjust!
- When a recipe call for House Seasoning Blend, you can use this recipe or substitute salt and pepper to taste.
- I always use unsalted butter in my recipes.
- I always use a meat thermometor to test for doneness when cooking meat. This one is my favorite.
- When a recipe is made in the oven, it should be pre-heated to the temperature in the recipe, unless otherwise noted.
- The nutritional information provided in this recipe is an estimate. Learn more on how I calculate nutritional information for my recipes.
Rita Olaf says
Christina, the jello recipe calls for 1 – 2 oz. pineapple chunks. Is that correct?? Thank you. Rita
Christina Hitchcock says
That is correct. enjoy!
Shelley K. says
Christina, the smallest can of pineapple is 8 ounces. Did you mean 20 ounces, similar in size to the oranges and pears?
Christina Hitchcock says
It’s a 20 oz can. Thanks for pointing that out. I’ve corrected the recipe. 🙂
Tina boshman says
Cherry jello salad
Do you put in the oranges with the liquid or do you drain them?
Christina Hitchcock says
You drain them.
Kat Jeter says
This reminds me of something my grandma used to make but she used cranberries. I love the idea of cherries for summer!
Christina Hitchcock says
It’s so light and refreshing! Perfect for summer!
Denay DeGuzman says
Your fabulous Cherry Jello Salad reminds me of the one my Grandmother used to make! It’s so yummy, refreshing and delicious. I’m tickled pink to have finally found a recipe similar to hers that I can continue to make and share with my family. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Crystal Lopez says
Oh my yum! This type of salad reminds me of one my grandmother made. I love, love, love all of the different berries. So refreshing!
Christina Hitchcock says
I love recipes that bring back memories 🙂
Sandra says
JELLO! I love Jello! I usually serve it for dessert but your recipe has so much yummy fruit in it that it was perfect for a side dish! My family though it was a treat!
Crystal Lopez says
This is such a classic and crowd pleasing dessert or snack! Jello and fruit just doesn’t get any better than this simple dish!
Christina Hitchcock says
It’s a favorite in our house 🙂
Wendy O’Neal says
My family loved your Cherry Salad recipe. So good and simple too.
Christina Hitchcock says
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Amanda says
I love how light and refreshing this salad is! A true classic!
Christina Hitchcock says
Yes! It’s always a crowd pleaser!
Lane | With Two Spoons says
Haven’t made a jello salad (ever), but this one looks way too good to pass up! YUM!
Christina Hitchcock says
It’s always a hit when I make it! Light and refreshing!
Madi says
What a fun dessert idea! I’ve never tried making jello salad before but it looks great!
Christina Hitchcock says
My family can’t get enough of it!
Gladys Parker says
Sounds Yummy, I’m on a lifetime healthy eating Dr ordered (diet)but I never thought to add all those at once to my sugarfree jello Delish!
New GFC, twitter follower/only GFC here though
http://sueparks2003.com/
Gladys Parker Thanks!
Kim says
Stopping by from Whimsical Wednesday… hoping for a follow back… Can’t wait to try some of your recipes
Elizabeth @It happens at Dinner says
This looks wonderful. I love food blogs and have one myself.
I found you from the Catch a Wednesay blog hop.
Elizabeth @ http://ithappensatdinner.blogspot.com
Amy @ A Little Nosh says
Ah, a classic. Wonderfully refreshing!
Lindsay says
Yumm! Okay it has more ingredients than I usually deal with haha but this sounds too good not to make. Congrats on your nephew getting christened this weekend…such a beautiful moment..my son’s christening date is approaching and I still need to find him a white suit ahhh!
Delighted Momma
Amber K says
This looks yummy, can’t wait to make it tomorrow! Joined Ya on GFC, hope to see ya stop by Parent Palace = )
Marlee says
Found you at the Tuesday Blog Hop! Glad I did am a happy new follower :).
asiadeli says
Hi,visiting from the Hop a Little Tuesday. Followed you before and have also clicked LIKE on your FB page as “Kara Hara”. I would love if you could return the favor.
http://freedelicacies.blogspot.com
Thank you.