Cheesecake Fruit Salad is sweet and refreshing! It tastes like a slice of creamy cheesecake in a glass. This delicious salad is packed with strawberries, blueberries, and bananas and tossed with cheesecake pudding.
I shared this recipe almost 4 years ago, and it's one that I keep making time and time again! I love this recipe because it is so versatile. You can add as many different fruits as you'd like and switch them out each time.
This cheesecake pudding fruit salad is perfect for any occasion- birthday parties, the 4th of July, Mother's day, potlucks, or any gathering. I love serving this as a side with my healthy turkey burgers or grilled chicken kabobs. Or, if you're going with a brunch theme, serve it with some blueberry crumble bars or crustless quiche recipe!
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Reasons to Love This Cheesecake Fruit Salad
- It's the perfect last minute dessert because it's so easy to make. This salad took about 10 minutes total. This recipe tastes best cold, and I would recommend cooling it in the refrigerator for a couple hours before serving it.
- This "no lettuce salad" is a great dessert, breakfast or snack! This is perfect for Christmas, Easter, cook outs, or really any occasion!
- This is kid friendly and even picky eaters like it!
Ingredients Needed
- Cheesecake Pudding Mix: you can use regular or sugar free pudding mix. This can be substitued with vanilla pudding mix, however it will not have the cheesecake flavor.
- Milk: skim milk, 1%, 2% or whole milk will work. Do not use almond milk or soymilk, as the pudding will not set correctly.
- Cool Whip: use the cool whip that's in the tub (not the canned stuff)!
- Bananas: select a banana that is perfectly yellow in color. Avoid overly ripe banana's, as they tend to be mushy and fall apart.
- Strawberries: select strawberries that are bright red in color and don't have a lot of bruises.
- Blueberries: select blueberries that are round and juicy. Avoid berries that are shrivled or green in color.
- Blackberries: these go bad quickly, so use them right away! These can be substitued for apples, oranges, or grapes.
Step by Step Instructions
Make the pudding. Combine the dry pudding and the milk in a large mixing bowl. Mix using a whisk for two minutes. Allow the pudding to thicken for 5 minutes.
While the pudding thickens, prepare the fruit. Cut the bananas into slices that are about ¼ inch thick. Cut the strawberries into slices about ¼ inch thick.
Add the fruit to the pudding. Stir gently with a spoon. Carefully fold in the whipped cream using a spoon. Place in a serving bowl, cover, and refrigerate for two hours.
Leftovers
Refrigerator: store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Make sure to keep this in the refrigerator as it has perishable foods in it.
Freezer: you can freeze this recipe, however, I would not recommend re-thawing it, as the texture will be different. Instead, place this in a baking pan, freeze and cut into bars. Serve frozen as a frozen cheese cake bar!
Recipe Variations
The fruits listed in the recipe can be substituted with any type of fruit. If using the whole fruit or larger types of fruit (such as a peach or kiwi), dice the fruit into bite-sized pieces before adding to the salad.
Here are a few fruit types of fruit that can be used in the salad. Feel free to mix and match! As a general rule of thumb, I try to use about three to four different fruits.
- Mango
- Kiwi
- Cubed apples
- Peaches
- Mandarin Oranges
- Strawberries
Consider these different fruit combinations if you really want to get creative:
- Kiwi, apple, blueberries and strawberries
- Blueberries, bananas, mangoes
- Peaches, strawberries, mandarin oranges and bananas
- Raspberries, blueberries & strawberries
Is Cheesecake Fruit Salad Healthy?
When compared to a normal slice of cheesecake, this cheesecake pudding fruit salad is definitely considered healthier! Most cheesecake contains cream cheese, which makes it high in fat and calories.
The cheesecake flavor in this fruit salad comes from the pudding which is "cheesecake flavored". It is much lower in calories and calories than normal cheesecake. A less healthy benefit of this recipe is that it does contain sugar.
Lighter Version of Cheesecake Fruit Salad
This fruit salad can be made into a lighter version with just a few ingredient swaps! These swaps will decrease the calorie and fat content of the dish.
- Milk: use skim milk or 1% milk
- Cool whip: use fat-free or light cool whip
- Pudding: use the sugar-free cheesecake pudding
Where Do I Purchase Cheesecake Pudding Mix?
Cheesecake pudding is found in the pudding aisle at most major grocery stores. I used the version made by the brand 'Jello'. Look for the "sugar-free" version to save on calories.
Frequenly Asked Questions
Can I Prep This Ahead of Time?
Yes! This recipe holds up well. You can prep it the day before the event. I would wait to add the bananas until a few hours before, as they tend to brown easily.
Can I Make This With Frozen Fruit?
This recipe can be made with frozen fruit. The fruit must be thawed and drained before adding it to the salad. This will prevent the juices of the frozen fruit from turning the cheesecake pudding salad a different color.
Can I Use Canned Fruit?
Canned fruit will work if it is completely drained. Mandarin oranges are a canned fruit that work great! You can do a combo and canned and fresh fruit if you'd like!
Expert Tips
- The pudding must be made with a fluid cow’s milk, such as skim, 1% or whole milk. It cannot be made with almond milk or soymilk, as the pudding will not thicken or set correctly.
- This fruit salad tastes best when chilled for about 2 hours before serving.
- Part of this recipe can be made the day before. Prep the pudding, wash the fruit and slice the strawberries. Wait to add the fruit and slice the bananas until the day that it will be served.
More Healthy Desserts
Cheesecake Fruit Salad
Ingredients
- 1 package cheesecake pudding dry mix
- 2 cups skim milk
- 4 ounces low-fat cool whip
- 3 bananas sliced
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 cup blackberries
- 2 cups strawberries sliced
Instructions
- Combine the dry pudding mix and milk.
- Mix well with mixer for two minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes, or until thickened.
- Slice the bananas and strawberries.
- Add the bananas, blackberries, blueberries and strawberries into the pudding. Use a spoon and stir gently.
- Gently fold in the cool whip.
- Refrigerate for two hours prior to serving. Serve cold.
This was sooooo good! Made it for my mom's birthday and everyone gobbled it up.