Fruit Salad Cheesecake - a unique, interesting, & very tasty way to serve fruit salad!
I haven't been in the kitchen at all for about the past two weeks, we've eaten take out three times this week, and I've resorted to my stash of "emergency" frozen foods for the remaining nights. I'm ready for life to settle down a bit.
So, for today's post I'm turning to a dish I've had in my queue for a while but just haven't shared yet.
A unique, interesting, & very tasty way to serve fruit salad!
I have quite a few dishes in my queue. I seem to be able to make stuff and photograph it much more quickly than I can edit all those photos and write the posts to share. But that queue of stuff sure comes in handy for crazy-busy times like now.
I'm excited to finally share this Fruit Salad Cheesecake with you!
Enjoy it as a fruit salad ... or as a dessert. It pretty much works for either way.
My husband Mark is actually the one who found this recipe.
He was reading a magazine while we were visiting his mom one weekend, and it had a page of recipes in it. Obviously knowing how much I love to cook and try out new recipes, he scanned for anything he thought would be of interest to me, and landed on this Fruit Salad Cheesecake.
Being the sweet man that he is, he tore the recipe out.
Well he was certainly right, this recipe was indeed of interest to me. I mean, Fruit Salad Cheesecake? I had never heard of such a thing. And, of course, had to give it a try.
Think upscale fruit cocktail wrapped in a creamy, light-and-fluffy cream cheese and whipped-topping blanket.
When you think about this recipe, think upscale fruit cocktail wrapped in a creamy, light-and-fluffy cream cheese and whipped-topping blanket. And what a unique, different, and tasty way to present fruit salad! We loved it.
So, just how do you make this unique fruit salad? er, cheesecake?
It's really pretty easy. And it's no-bake, which is a plus in the ease department.
Simply simmer together in a saucepan on the stovetop a mixture of crushed pineapple, sugar, and unflavored gelatin, then stir in a block of cream cheese. Allow this to cool, and then mix in some halved fresh grapes, mandarin orange slices, coarsely chopped maraschino cherries, and chopped pecans.
Fold in whipped topping, and pour the mixture into a vanilla wafer crust.
Chill ... and you're done! Pretty easy, huh?
I tried the cheesecake out in two sizes ...
A full-sized cheesecake made in a 9-inch springform pan:
And individual mini cheesecakes made in muffin tins:
Both sizes worked, so size choice is just a matter of what presentation you want to make and how you'd like to serve the cheesecake.
For the individual mini fruit salad cheesecakes, I wasn't quite sure what would work best as a method for making them ... so, I tried a few different ways:
1. Pouring the fruit salad mixture into muffin cups first, topping with three vanilla wafer cookies as the crust, with the plan of then inverting them when I removed them from the pan.
RESULT: Not so great. The vanilla wafers didn't "fit" well, and the cheesecakes just looked kind of messy when inverted.
Enjoy it as a fruit salad ... or as a dessert. It pretty much works for either way.
2. Placing a single vanilla wafer in the bottom of foil cupcake liners, and pouring the fruit salad mixture on top.
RESULT: I didn't like the look of the ridges in the cheesecakes from the foil liner, but it wasn't too bad a method.
3. Placing a single vanilla wafer directly in the bottom of muffin tin cups, without any type of cupcake liner, and pouring the fruit salad mixture on top. My worry with this one was that I wouldn't be able to get the mini cheesecakes out of the pan.
RESULT: This was my favorite method. I liked the look of the smoother sides, and ...
... the amount of "remnants" left in the pan when removing the cheesecakes was minimal. I simply sprayed the pan very lightly with nonstick cooking spray, and ran a knife around the edge of each mini cheesecake before lifting it out of the pan.
The vanilla wafer cookie doesn't completely fill the bottom of the muffin cup, so the bottom comes out looking like this:
... but I don't think it looks too bad. (Hey, how many people will turn their fruit salad over to check out the bottom anyway?)
So, whether you make individual minis or a full-sized cheesecake, this Fruit Salad Cheesecake is sure one decidedly different, unique, interesting, and very tasty way to serve fruit salad!
Check out these other super tasty fruit salad recipes:
- Strawberry Pretzel Salad
- Triple Berry Fruit Salad with Vanilla Simple Syrup
- Classic Pineapple Jello Salad
- Apple Pie Filling Fruit Salad
- Peach Pie Filling Fruit Salad
- Classic Ambrosia Salad
- Classic Blueberry Jello Salad
- 7-Up Cranberry Jello Salad
- Strawberry, Blueberry & Greens Salad
- Cantaloupe Salad with Maple & Cinnamon
- More salad recipes
Thank you for stopping by The Kitchen is My Playground. We'd love to have you back soon!
Yield: 10-12 servings
Fruit Salad Cheesecake
A unique, interesting, & very tasty way to serve fruit salad!
prep time: 25 Mcook time: 5 Mtotal time: 30 M
ingredients:
Crust:
- 1 1/2 c. vanilla wafer crumbs (I give vanilla wafer cookies a quick whirl in the food processor)
- 2 T. butter, melted
Filling:
- 1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple, drained
- 3/4 c. granulated sugar
- 1/2 c. cold water
- 2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
- 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, cubed
- 1 1/2 c. halved seedless grapes
- 1 (11 oz.) can mandarin oranges, drained and cut in half
- 1 (10 oz.) jar maraschino cherries, drained and roughly chopped
- 1/2 c. finely chopped pecans
- 2 c. whipped topping (such as Cool Whip)
instructions:
How to cook Fruit Salad Cheesecake
For the crust:
- In a small bowl, combine vanilla wafer crumbs and melted butter.
- Press into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan coated with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
For the filling:
- In a small saucepan, cook crushed pineapple and sugar over medium heat for 5 minutes or until heated through.
- Place cold water in a small bowl and sprinkle with gelatin; let stand for 1 minute. Stir gelatin mixture into the warm pineapple mixture.
- Reduce heat to low and add cubed cream cheese. Cook and stir until cream cheese is melted and the mixture is well blended.
- Remove from heat and cool completely.
- Stir the grapes, mandarin oranges, cherries, and pecans into the cooled cream cheese mixture. Fold in the whipped topping.
- Pour into prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
TRACEY'S NOTES
- For Minis: Instead of making vanilla wafer crumbs and butter mixture, place a single vanilla wafer cookie in the bottom of muffin tin cups that have been very lightly sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Fill muffin tin cups full with fruit salad mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Adapted from Taste of Home, as published in Carolina Country magazine, May, 2012
You might also like these other fruit salad treats:
Affiliate links are included in this post. I receive a small amount of compensation for anything purchased from these links,at Amazon.com
at no additional cost to you.
This looks delicious. I like it because it's unique. What a perfect holiday dessert too!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Wonderful side dish, too. It's uniqueness is why I gave the recipe a try ... I love to try out 'different' things!
DeleteWhat a hoot.. it is a surprise cake.. so cheerful. Thanks for sharing it on foodie friday.
ReplyDeletewoww..that´s a great cake :)
ReplyDeleteand do not miss the......
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it is FUN :)
WELCome
HÃ¥kan ( The Roseman)
Such a wonderful and unique cheesecake!:)
ReplyDeleteThis looks so good! I am your newest RSS follower. Sarah from The Ease of Freeze.
ReplyDeleteWelome to The Kitchen is My Playground, Sarah! Nice to have you here!
DeleteThis is a very pretty dessert, love the way it looks! Thanks for the tips on making the mini size too. I know how difficult it is to kick off a new school year, and this one sounds extra hard, so it's OK to state facts! Hang in there!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anita! I know you COMPLETELY understand! It's settling down ... and my kids are wonderful. I just try to keep my eye on the ball ... teaching these precious little ones. :-)
DeleteHeya :)
ReplyDeleteQuick question.
Can you use whipped cream instead of Cool Whip?? As I am in NZ we don't get Cool Whip or anything else like it here. I have made cheesecakes using lemon juice and Whipped cream before, was wondering if it would be similar? Or is there another sort of Coo Whip like thing out there? That may be sold outside of the US?
Thanks,
Natalia xoxo
Hi, Natalia! While I haven't tried it, yes, I think you could use real whipped cream. It may change the texture just a bit ... to a teeny bit 'softer,' but I think it would still be great. The gelatin will serve as a stabilizer for the whipped cream. If you give it a go, please stop back by and let me know the result!
DeleteThanks so much for reading The Kitchen is My Playground!
I used 1 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream to make 2 cups of homemade whipped cream. Turned out wonderfully.
DeleteWow, so pretty and festive! Thanks for sharing this on 'Or so she says...' at last week's link party! I would love to have you add the party to your list and stop back to share more of your great ideas. There's actually a party going on right now (it's every Saturday through Tuesday.) Thanks a bunch! ~ Mariel www.oneshetwoshe.com
ReplyDeleteI love the dessert. But I think I love the disclaimer even more. :D
ReplyDeleteThis is just beautiful! I love everything about it...the colors, the fruit, the minis, the big cheesecake, the ease. WOW! Thanks ever so much for linking up at Weekend Potluck. Please come again soon. (I totally 'get' your disclaimer also=)
ReplyDeleteOh dear...I neglected to say how beautiful your photos are and what a great tutorial you did with this. Impressive!
ReplyDeleteAw, shucks ... thank you so much, Marsha!
DeleteThis looks amazing! I just seen the pin and it caught my eye! Love the picture and how pretty the cheesecake is with the fruit mixed in.
ReplyDeleteCongrats! This gorgeous recipe is being featured at Weekend Potluck...live this morning. Please stop by and grab your 'featured' button...and do come back soon. Thanks for sharing with us.
ReplyDeleteoh my goodness... I make a fruit salad with some of the same ingredients... every holiday...but this just sounds so much better going to do this for sure!! thanks for sharing if you would like to share it at One More Time Events linky party I would love it...here is the link http://www.onemoretimeevents.com/2013/03/share-it-one-more-time-features-and.html
ReplyDeleteHope to see you there..
Tammy
love the look of both types of cheesecake. just wondering how many mini`s do you get?
ReplyDeleteOh boy ... I don't remember exactly how many minis I got. It was at least 2 dozen. Guess I should have written that down!
DeleteI made this yesterday for a pot luck and it was a hit. I did make some substitutions to use what I had on hand. I used graham crackers for the crust, substituted a can of mixed fruit cocktail for the grapes, and used heavy whipping cream to make the whipped cream. It all turned out beautifully and delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
ReplyDeleteI just made it yesterday and the taste is good bit it seems like it has too much fruit, I van barely taste the cream cheese :/ I wonder if I can add more crean cheese. ..?
ReplyDeleteI just made it yesterday and the taste is good bit it seems like it has too much fruit, I van barely taste the cream cheese :/ I wonder if I can add more crean cheese. ..?
ReplyDeleteI would think you could add a bit more cream cheese, no problem ... or use less fruit to your liking. Enjoy!
DeleteSounds delicious....looks beautiful!!! Pinning it!!
ReplyDeleteThis recipe is perfect. I was getting bored with a bowl of fresh fruit at my brunches and this was the best thing to add to my file. It is a no- brainer if you are not an experienced cook and it impresses if you want to show off. Fun and easy recipe. Thank you so much.
ReplyDeleteYou are so creative! I want to try this :) PINNED
ReplyDeleteCongratulations!
ReplyDeleteYour post is featured on Full Plate Thursday this week. We will be pinning your post to our features board and hope you enjoy your new Red Plate!
Miz Helen
Such a colorful treat! I love it and it looks delicious!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun recipe!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the loveliest cheesecakes I ever did see, Tracey! What a neat idea...and SO beautiful! This is a recipe I'd be proud to bring to any event! Thank you bunches for linking up and sharing with us this week! Xoxo
ReplyDeletewonder what you would suggest substituting for the cherries ? Love your recipes, photos and detail.
ReplyDelete