Vanilla Pudding Fruit Salad — The easiest fruit salad ever thanks to the addition of vanilla pudding mix! Make it for your next party and watch this crowd-favorite fruit salad disappear! It’s always the simplest recipes that people love the most!
Vanilla Fruit Salad … with Pudding Mix!
I cannot resist the glory of summertime fruit. It’s my favorite time of year. So many amazing, sweet, juicy, wonderful options.
Every now and then my eyes are bigger than my stomach and I find myself with enough fruit on hand to open up my own grocery store.
The answer? Make fruit salad.
This lightly vanilla-kissed fruit salad is the easiest fruit salad ever. The vanilla flavor is light, but adds an extra something special to nature’s finest.
If you’re throwing a Fourth of July party or any event, you can stir the fruit salad together the night before and let the flavors marry. One less thing to do the day of the event, and the salad tastes even better after an overnight stint in the fridge.
If you find yourself with a surplus of fruit such as cherries, raspberries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums, cantaloupe, honeydew, or kiwi, just toss everything together.
Your fruit surplus will magically disappear!
Vanilla Pudding Fruit Salad Ingredients
To make this fruit salad recipe with vanilla pudding, you’ll need:
- Fruit
- Instant vanilla pudding mix
- Lemon or lime juice (optional)
- Vanilla extract (optional)
- Almond extract (optional)
How to Make Fruit Salad with Vanilla Pudding
Simply sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons of instant vanilla pudding mix over a bowl of fruit, stir, and over time the natural fruit juices will moisten the pudding powder. Or you can add a splash of water to help it along.
The pudding mix and fruit juices make a thin coating and it’s so good.
Can the Pudding Mix Be Substituted?
If you don’t have pudding mix in your area or are opposed to it, this probably isn’t the recipe for you.
What Fruit Is Best for Fruit Salad?
The best fruit for fruit salad is whatever you have on hand! This easy fruit salad with vanilla pudding can be made with any variety of fruits you have.
Try using 3 to 4 cups of:
- Cherries
- Raspberries
- Apricots
- Peaches
- Nectarines
- Plums
- Cantaloupe
- Honeydew
- Kiwi
Mix and match the fruit as you see fit! Generally speaking, three to four varieties of fruit should do the trick.
Tips for Making Vanilla Pudding Fruit Salad
If you’re a citrus fan, you can add a couple tablespoons of lemon or lime juice for a tangier fruit salad. I also find a tiny bit of almond extract tastes excellent.
Adding a splash of vanilla and / or almond extract is totally optional, but it will dial up the delicious vanilla flavor even more.
To keep your pudding mix fruit salad vegan / vegetarian, look for a vegan instant pudding mix. Jell-O brand instant pudding is vegan, but read the label to double check!
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Vanilla Pudding Fruit Salad
Ingredients
- 3 to 4 cups fruit, I used 1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries, 1 cup grapes, 1/2 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup pineapple
- 1 to 2 tablespoons instant vanilla pudding mix (Jell-O brand is vegan
- about 2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice, optional
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, optional
- ½ teaspoon almond extract, optional
Instructions
- Add fruit to a large bowl.
- Sprinkle with 1 to 2 tablespoons instant pudding mix powder and toss to combine. Over time, the natural fruit juices moisten the pudding powder. Or help it along with a splash of water.
- Optionally add lemon or lime juice for a tangier fruit salad and toss to combine.
- Optionally add vanilla or almond extract, or both, and toss to combine.
- Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours before serving. I prefer to make it and refrigerate overnight because the flavors marry and the coating tastes best.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Fruit Salad Recipes:
Tropical Fruit Salad— This tropical fruit salad features fresh fruit that’s tossed in pineapple juice, coconut and almond extracts, and piña colada mix. Don’t worry, this easy fruit salad is non-alcoholic!
Ambrosia Salad — This classic fruit salad is made with pineapple, mandarin oranges, grapes, coconut, and tossed in a light and creamy, tangy-yet-sweet dressing! The EASIEST side dish ever — just add everything to one bowl and stir!
Waldorf Salad — Classic and timeless, apple Waldorf salad is always a crowd favorite especially when apples are in season! It makes a great holiday side dish that your guests will devour thanks to a sweet and creamy dressing that coats a mixture of apples, grapes, celery, walnuts, and more!
Balsamic Watermelon Cucumber Salad — An EASY, healthy, and light salad with watermelon, cucumber, arugula, goat cheese, candied nuts, and drizzled with a homemade balsamic glaze!! A PERFECT summer salad for those days when it’s too hot to cook!!
Originally posted June 30, 2014 and reposted July 22, 2022 with updated text.
I could easily eat my body weight of this fruit salad! :) It looks beautiful too!
Thanks, Jocelyn! :)
yum looks so delicious and refreshing. what an interesting idea of using pudding mix. thanks for the awesome ideas.
Instant vanilla pudding mix in fruit salad?? Averie, you’re a genius!! With how much fruit I always end up buying (and how my guy refuses to eat any of it), I definitely want to try this. Yum! :) And I totally thought of you the other day. I was watching a past episode of “Rewrapped” on the Food Network. (It’s a show where 3 contestants have to recreate an iconic American snack or dessert in the first round, then use it to create something [Chopped-style] in the second round.) The episode was making Entenmann’s chocolate chip cookies, and when one contestant put instant pudding mix in his cookie dough to make it softer, every single judge — including the baking expert — freaked out and said that was absolutely insane and they’d never ever do that themselves. With how many incredible pudding cookies you’ve made, I thought you might get a smile out of that! ;)
Wow, love that story and the contestant probably learned that from food blogs! Seems so ‘par for the course’ with food bloggers lately!
I LOVE fruit salad, and this one is SO pretty, Averie! Love the pop of vanilla.
I’m definitely making this as soon as I can get to the store to get fresh fruit. It is so beautiful and looks so refreshing!
Averie I never thought pudding mix can be used in this way too!! Gorgeous looking salad and I am crazy for all summer fruits too!
I crave tons of fresh fruit during the summer. For breakfast, for lunch, for dinner, for snacks – I want it all the time! I can’t wait to try this awesome salad! Love the vanilla touch.
I love love summer fruit too. Beautiful salad and what a clever way to dress it.
This fruit salad looks gorgeous! I’ve been excited to see yours! And dang girl if only I were as far ahead on posts as you are :)!
I was going to make fruit pizza. Then, when I saw Sally, then you, then Kelly of Just a Taste, and Jessica, and a million other ppl all post fruit pizzas within like 2 weeks, and I had just bought all this fruit, I was like…umm…I need to do something different, so…this is what I did :) But I still want to make a fruit pizza. Next year though :)
Fabulous idea! I just love fresh fruit salad and this one looks amazing. Love the colours – and pudding mix? brilliant.
Years ago I sometimes used frozen pina colada concentrate to doctor up plain fruit salad…that was delicious too but I like this lighter idea better. Will definitely try it with the partial vanilla pudding box in my pantry. As always, your photos are so vibrant and beautiful Averie! :)
Thanks for the compliments on my images and your frozen pina colada concentrate idea sounds great to me actually! :)
fruit salad is my fave! this looks phenomenal!!
I love my refrigerator when it’s bursting at the hinges with fresh fruit (it’s so sad & empty during the winter months!). Gorgeous salad; *pinned!* Love the idea of tossing in a bit of almond extract!! Mmm… xo
Thanks for pinning and I’m not surprised you’re an almond extract fan, too!
I never ever would have thought to sprinkle pudding mix over fruit, but it’s totally a genius idea! Love these super colorful and bright photos too. So pretty! :)
Totally gorgeous!
Hi Averie
If adding almond extract along with the vanilla extract is it 1/2 teaspoon also, or do I use one or the other.
Mix and match however you see fit and based on what your tastebuds tell you to do :)