Ambrosia Salad

This simple bowl of fruit has earned an important place at the Southern table.

Servings:
8 to 10

Ambrosia salad is perhaps the most Southern salad of all. First, it is a salad with no lettuce, a category of dishes the South really excels at creating. Second, it is a side dish that we've managed to elevate to dessert status (though, serve it as a side dish and no one will argue).

Serve ambrosia salad at the holidays, the time of the year when most people make it, or serve it in the summer. Whenever you want it, it's the right time to make it.

The good thing about ambrosia salad (besides how delicious it is) is how forgiving it is to changes. Citrus is key, but you don't have to use orange segments alone. You can add grapefruit, tangerines, and more. Pineapple is a given, but some ambrosia recipes call for pear, even apple.

To finish it off, dried, flaked coconut is typical, but you could also use other options like pomegrante seeds, berries, even pumpkin seeds.

Ambrosia

Ingredients

  • 12 navel oranges, peeled and sectioned

  • 1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into cubes

  • 2 Tbsp. powdered sugar

  • 1 cup freshly grated coconut

  • Garnish: orange rind curls

Directions

  1. Combine fruit and powdered sugar:

    Toss together fruit and powdered sugar in a large bowl.

  2. Layer fruit mixture and coconut:

    Place one-third fruit mixture in a serving bowl. Top with one-third coconut. Repeat layers twice. Cover and chill 2 hours. Garnish, if desired.

Test Kitchen Tip

Three red grapefruit, peeled and sectioned, may be added to fruit mixture, if desired.

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