If ambrosia was your favorite dessert growing up you’re not alone! This sweet, creamy dish was also served as a salad alongside the meal, making it a side that just about every sweet tooth enjoyed. This Ambrosia Fruit Salad Cheesecake combines some of the best aspects of ambrosia with creamy cheesecake for a dessert that’s truly heavenly.
There’s plenty of fresh fruit in this cheesecake, but what’s in the recipe is more of a blueprint than a strict rulebook. Feel free to add cherries, strawberries, or remove any fruits you’re not fond of.
I went for a variety of colors of fruits for a “stained glass” effect when you cut into each piece. Just make sure to cut each piece of fruit small so that when you slice into this cheesecake you get clean edges.
We’re using gelatin to set this no-bake cheesecake, along canned mandarin oragnes and pineapple. You might wonder if you can just use the juice drained from the pineapple instead of the water to activate the gelatin and the answer is complicated. The enzymes that are naturally present in pineapple (like bromelain) can prevent the gelatin from setting up. As much as we love the flavor of pineapple it’s not worth the risk to add it into recipes that use gelatin.
Once you’ve got your crushed pineapple and gelatin heated up you add in your cream cheese. It doesn’t take long for this to melt. You want to let this cool before you add the other ingredients to the mixture.
I drained my cherries and mandarin oranges again after cutting them as the chopping released a lot of juice.
I like to use the bottom of a glass or mug to flatten the crust out. It keeps my hands clean and results in a more even thickness across the bottom of the pan.
Then fill the crust with the fruity cheesecake filling and let it set in the refrigerator. There’s no baking involved here which makes this dish a super easy one!
Use a greased springform pan so that you can remove the entire cheesecake easily.
This Ambrosia Fruit Salad Cheesecake is a fresh and fruity combo you won’t want to miss. It’s vintage cuisine, but with a fun twist that’s not too sweet. It’s just right.
Ambrosia Fruit Salad Cheesecake
Diet: Vegetarian
For the Crust:
- 1 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers (about 9 sheets)
- 5 tablespoons salted butter, melted
For the Filling:
- 1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup cold water
- 2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
- 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, cubed, room temperature
- 1 cup halved seedless green grapes
- 1/2 cup blueberries, cut in half
- 1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges, drained and cut in half
- 1 (10 oz) jar maraschino cherries, drained and roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
- 2 cups Cool Whip
Preparation
- Combine graham cracker crumbs with butter. Or add both to food processor and pulse until uniformly sandy mixture forms. Press into bottom of greased 9” springform pan. Set aside.
- Add pineapple and sugar to small saucepan. Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.
- In small bowl combine water and gelatin. Let stand one minute then add to pineapple mixture. Reduce heat to low and add cream cheese. Cook until melted, string often. Remove from heat and scoop into glass or metal bowl to cool completely.
- Stir in fruit and nuts then fold in Cool Whip. Pour mixture into springform pan and smooth top with rubber spatula or back of spoon. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Cut into slices to serve.
Recipe adapted from The Kitchen Is My Playground.