Watergate Salads

Well our heat is back.  How about cool salad recipe?  This is an old recipe from the 50’s that is great for any dinner, a pot luck or a holiday meal.  What do the colors suggest to you? 

Watergate Salad (Pistachio Salad)

1 package instant pistachio pudding mix

1 small can crushed pineapple

1 8 oz. tub of Cool Whip

1 12 oz. bag of mini marshmallows

1 jar of Maraschino cherries

Drain crushed pineapple, setting juice aside in a cup.

Place the pudding mix in a medium to large bowl.  Add in enough pineapple juice to make a paste.

Thoroughly mix in Cool Whip.  Be careful not to over mix.

Fold in marshmallows.

Add in Maraschino cherries, either whole or sliced in half, leaving a handful for garnish.

Garnish the top of the salad with the rest of the Maraschino cherries.

Variation – You may add a banana, coconut and/or ½ pistachios for more texture.  I’m always for more nuts.

Pink Watergate Salad

1 (20 ounce) crushed pineapple, undrained

1 tablespoon of granulated sugar

1 large (0.6 ounce) box of strawberry, raspberry or cherry flavored gelatin

2 cups of cottage cheese

2 cups of whipped cream or whipped topping

1/2 cup of mini marshmallows

1/2 cup of finely chopped pecans

Add pineapple, with it's juices, and sugar to a saucepan and bring to a boil; stir in the gelatin until blended, remove from heat and let mixture cool completely.  Do not refrigerate. You want it as a liquid.

Cream the cottage cheese in a food processor or blender along with a spoon or two of the cooled pineapple mixture. Combine the pineapple mixture and cottage cheese. Fold in the whipped topping.

Add marshmallows and pecans, stir well, cover and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours or longer.

Variations - Instead of cottage cheese, you can substitute 2 cups of buttermilk, sour cream, a salad dressing or mayo.  You may use any combination of these for a total of 2 cups. You can also substitute one 8 ounce whipped cream cheese and stirred into the hot pineapple, and add in 1 cup of another one of the ingredients.

You can also vary the color and flavor using different gelatin flavors. Lemon, lime, or a combination of the two, apricot and orange are the most common gelatin flavors you'll see.  

Fall is almost here and orange is a great color.  Make an orange Mandarin salad with Mandarin oranges and orange Jello.

Hope this cools off your day.  Have a great one, be happy and may God bless you and yours.