Creamy Grape Salad
on Mar 13, 2019, Updated Jan 30, 2024
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This Creamy Grape Salad will be perfect for a holiday side dish, also great for a summer bbq or pot luck dish. With just a few minutes prep and a couple of simple ingredients, you can have a crunchy, creamy, and sweet salad that everyone will love!
Grape Salad
Grape SaladDuring the summer months, I like to make fruit salads for our family potlucks and BBQ’s. Most of the time, I will make our basic Creamy Fruit Salad. But when I am looking to make a simpler salad, this Grape Salad with yogurt dressing knocks it out of the park. The salad is so simple but I find it simply delicious. I make the dressing with cream cheese, yogurt, sugar, and vanilla. We toss everything together and then top with brown sugar and chopped pecan topping. That’s it, it’s so easy to make.
Grape Salad is so very popular for potlucks. There are so many different variations that others will make. Some other recipes will use Cool Whip topping or marshmallow cream. Others will use a sour mayo type of dressing. You will see some others will top their salads with toffee bits or even butterfingers for additional sweet and crunch. I like simple recipes that I know many will enjoy. So I keep this creamy salad simple. Go ahead and be creative with your toppings if you choose.
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I have made this Grape Salad and each and every time it is always a favorite. Most everyone at our family gatherings requests a copy of the recipe. I will quite often make it for a dinner side dish during the summer months. If I make it for a dinner side, I just half the recipe.
I like to use red and green seedless grapes for my grape salad. The first time I made this recipe, I was making it as a Christmas side dish so the red and green were perfect for the holidays. I continued to make it with both colors of grapes since then, maybe out of pure habit. You can use all green or all red or a mixture of each like I have.
First off, if you are making this Grape Salad recipe, you’ll want to wash your grapes with cold water. I like to use a colander for easy rinsing. I then cut all of the grapes in half especially if children will be enjoying, full-sized grapes are a serious choking hazard for the little ones. After cutting, I like to dry my grapes on a sheet pan lined with paper towels to allow the grapes to dry a bit. I also blot with an additional paper towel.
The dressing I make for the Grape Salad is so simple since it is made with cream cheese, yogurt, sugar, and a bit of vanilla. Be sure that your cream cheese has softened. I use a hand mixer most of the time to allow for easy cleanup. I usually cream it for a few minutes time. The softer the cream cheese, the creamier the dressing tends to be. The addition of the sugar and vanilla add some extra sweetness.
I then top my Grape Salad with a bit of brown sugar and chopped pecans. The sweetness and crunch from the toppings are perfect. You will find the entire salad to be just a bit sweet with just enough crunch. If you should use an overly sweet grape, you may want to cut back on a bit of the sugar.
Ingredients to make Creamy Grape Salad
2 lb Green Grapes
2 lb Red Grapes
1/2 cup Sugar
1 cup Yogurt or Sour Cream
8 oz softened Cream Cheese
1 tsp Vanilla
2 tbsp Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Chopped Pecans
How to make Grape Salad
Wash and dry grapes.
Cut all grapes in half to prevent choking.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy.
Add in sugar, vanilla, and yogurt.
Beat until blended.
Add grapes and toss to coat.
Sprinkle brown sugar and pecans on top.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Can I make Creamy Grape Salad Ahead of Time?
I find this salad to be best if served shortly after tossing all the ingredients. If you are looking to have your salad made ahead of time, I suggest adding the dressing and topping just before you are serving. I prep everything and have it ready to mix. If you are looking ahead say an hour or so, go ahead and add your dressing but leave the toppings for when ready to serve.
Looking for other fruit salad recipes? See these other salads I have shared:
- Waldorf Salad – a classic salad that is great for the holidays.
- Berry Cheesecake Salad – Loaded with different berries!
- Strawberry Banana Salad – another fresh fruit salad.
Grape Salad
Ingredients
- 2 lb Green Grapes
- 2 lb Red Grapes
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 1 cup Yogurt or Sour Cream
- 8 oz softened Cream Cheese
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 2 tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1/4 cup Chopped Pecans
Instructions
- Wash and dry grapes.
- Cut all grapes in half to prevent choking.
- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy.
- Add in sugar, vanilla and yogurt.
- Beat until blended.
- Add grapes and toss to coat.
- Sprinkle brown sugar and pecans on top.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- You can also add in granola, toffee, or candy bar pieces.
Nutrition
Sour cream can be used also, correct?
What kind of yogurt is used?
Hi Brittany! I usually keep a large tub of Dannon Vanilla yogurt on hand and use it for most of my salads. It will add a bit of additional vanilla sweetness. Hope you enjoy.
Great side dish that goes with about any meal. So glad I found this