Recipe of the Week: Pistachio Dessert Salad

In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day I wanted to post a green colored recipe. My mom used to make this Pistachio Dessert Salad every year at Christmas. Actually she called it Congealed Salad or Pistachio Salad. As a kid I always called it "that green stuff." Actually I still call it that, but I think Pistachio Dessert Salad sounds a little more inviting.

In some cookbooks it's also listed as Watergate Salad. In case your curious about this name origin I looked it up (proving once again that I'm one of the biggest nerds on the planet), and I found an article at Life123.com. It said that pistachio pudding was introduced by Kraft in 1976, and customers began making Pistachio Pineapple Delight. Then a Chicago food reporter named it Watergate Salad in her column. So there you go.

Today I'm sharing the recipe that I use and some variations on the recipe.

Recipe for Pistachio Dessert Salad:

Ingredients:

1 (8 oz.) tub Cool Whip, thawed

1 (3 3/4 oz.) pkg. instant pistachio pudding mix

1 to 1 1/2 c. miniature marshmallows

1 (15 oz) can crushed pineapple (drained)

1 c. chopped pecans (optional)

Directions: Combine pudding mix and Cool Whip. Add other ingredients and mix well. Chill 1 hour before serving.

Tips & Suggestions:

-This is a very easy recipe to customize for different occasions or for your own tastes. Here are some examples and suggestions:

• Add a splash of color and flavor by mixing in OR topping with Maraschino cherries.
• Substitute a can of fruit cocktail for the pineapple. Or if you like a lot of fruit, mix in the fruit cocktail in addition to the pineapple.
• Another great item to subsitute or add to the mix is mandarin oranges.

-You can also change the recipe completely by using a different flavor of pudding or jello mix.

• My mom makes a red/pink version of this using cherry or strawberry jello and Maraschino cherries.
• If you want a green salad, but you don't like pistachio, you can use lime gelatin instead.
• Another version I've heard of uses orange jello, mandarin oranges, and/or pineapple.
  

Personally I love this pistachio version. What do you guys think?

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-Jerri