Frozen Fruit Salad (With a Discourse on What Constitutes a Salad)

Photo courtesy of Jenny Calvin

The president of a local university here in Nashville, not blessed with the privilege of having been raised in the South (bless his heart), recently expressed perplexity — and perhaps a little contempt — that salads here usually don’t consist of lettuce.  Of course not; we’re much more creative than that.

For any of you not up-to-date on the proper way of doing things, here’s my Southern definition of a salad:

A cold dish, not a dessert, that consists of three or more ingredients.

Salads may include any number of ingredients, including such items as marshmallows, Jello, Cool Whip, or nuts.  And it may be pink instead of green.  But it’s not served for dessert, because we must have a reason for pie.

Having clarified this matter for everyone’s edification, let’s get down to business with a nice, cool salad.

Frozen Fruit Salad

Prep Time:  15 minutes (not including time to thaw — I’m assuming that you’ve been good and thawed things in the fridge the night before)
Freeze Time: Depends on what type of dish you’re using

Ingredients

• 1 box frozen strawberries, thawed at least enough to mix properly
• 1 lg. can crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 pkg. cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 8 oz. Cool Whip (but if you only have a 12-oz, I’m sure it will be all right)
• Optional (but great for adding color and pizzazz): Sliced bananas, mandarin oranges, small marshmallows

Directions

Thaw strawberries and blend with room-temperature cream cheese.  Drain pineapple and fold in (along with any optional ingredients).  Fold in Cool Whip (do not use mixer or the sky will fall, and so will your salad).

Spread into casserole dish and freeze. Can also be done in cupcake cups with a dollop of Cool Whip on top.  Or, if you have cute little ramekins or little bowls, use those instead. (I have some really cute little bitty Wexford glasses that I like to use for ice cream and for this recipe — I fill all those, and put the rest in a small casserole dish for later).

If you’re using a casserole dish and you’ve made it ahead, allow enough thawing time so that you can cut it!