Waldorf Salad
on Nov 09, 2017, Updated Jan 30, 2024
You will find this Waldorf Salad loaded with apples, grapes, celery, dried cranberries, walnuts, and vanilla yogurt. It will make for a perfect side dish for your Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
Waldorf Salad
My grandmother makes a traditional Waldorf Salad every Thanksgiving and every Christmas. I was always hesitant to even give it a try because she included mayo in her recipe. I recall watching all the fruits being loaded into the bowl wishing the mayo was not going to be added next, lol.
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I was never a fan of mayonnaise. So I just never loaded the salad on my plate during the holidays. I LOVED all the other ingredients she tossed in that bowl but the mayo just killed it for me.
I am making some new side dish recipes for the holidays this year. This week, I shared The Best Sweet Potato Casserole with you. Yesterday, I posted our Cheesy Green Bean Casserole. I know both those dishes are going to be great for Thanksgiving dinner.
I was really wanting my kiddos to try Waldorf Salad like their great grandmother makes. Problem is… They do not like mayo either. So I decided we would make our own Waldorf Salad with vanilla yogurt instead of the mayo. The salad turned out absolutely delicious. The kids loved it and this mom ate two HUGE helpings.
This recipe for Waldorf Salad is quite traditional with yogurt substituting for the mayo. This recipe is just like my grandmother’s with no mayo. I know she would probably think I am crazy for not adding in mayo, haha. I am just happy to have a traditional salad with a bit of a twist.
INGREDIENTS
4 Apples, cored and diced (I used 2 Granny Smith, 2 Gala)
3 stalks Celery, chopped
1 cup Red Grapes, halved
1 cup Green Grapes, halved
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup Dried Cranberries
3/4 cup Walnuts
12 oz Vanilla Yogurt
DIRECTIONS
Add fresh fruits and celery to large bowl.
Add lemon juice and stir to coat.
Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.
I highly recommend adding this dish to your holiday dinners. You are going to love the crunch and creaminess that it offers.
Go ahead and consider these other fruit salads that I have shared:
- Creamy Grape Salad – Similar salad but a bit sweeter!
- Creamy Fruit Salad – Loaded with all different types of fruit.
- Frog Eye Salad – This is a must make!
Waldorf Salad
Ingredients
- 4 Apples, cored and diced (I used 2 Granny Smith, 2 Gala)
- 3 stalks Celery, chopped
- 1 cup Red Grapes, halved
- 1 cup Green Grapes, halved
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 cup Dried Cranberries
- 3/4 cup Walnuts
- 12 oz Vanilla Yogurt
Instructions
- Add fresh fruits and celery to large bowl.
- Add lemon juice and stir to coat.
- Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.
Nutrition
this looks so good. I don’t like celery, anything I could use in it’s place?
I’ve always liked mayo in Waldorf salad but it’s not healthy and my daughter and grandson don’t like mayo. The vanilla yogurt is a delicious heathy alternative! Thank you.
Hi Dee! Thanks much for taking time to review and rate the recipe, it always helps other followers. The vanilla yogurt is always my favorite part of the Waldorf Salad. I think the bit of added sweetness just makes it so much better than the mayo.
I love Waldorf Salad its so refreshing
Great recipe!
I make it with Chobani coconut Greek yogurt. So good. We have a cup with our quiche in the morning.
Super idea ! Love coconut yogurt can’t wait to try this ❣️
I made this for Christmas! It was a huge hit. I also added dried cherries along with the dried cranberries. I used the Greek vanilla yogurt. I would absolutely recommend this recipe to anybody for all occasions including summer or winter holidays.
The additions so amazing! Merry Christmas to you!
I made this salad for Labor Day and it was a hit, everyone loved it. Quick , easy and delicious!
Five stars! Thank you for this great recipe!
I made this today for my Herb Society meeting. I doubled it. It was fabulous! Everyone loved it…it was all gone. Thanks for the great recipe!
This looks so yummy, but what would you recommend other than yogurt. I’m not a fan of yogurt!
I make Waldorf salad with 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup light mayo and a teaspoon of sugar blended together with enough milk that it is thin enoigh to coat the fruits.
I have been making my mother’s version of Waldorf Salad for 40+ years now. She only used apple, celery, & pecans (or walnuts) and her dressing was Miracle Whip with a little bit of sugar and enough milk to make it thin enough to coat the fruit well. She put it in a pint canning jar, screwed the lid on & shook the daylights out of it. I’ve never measured the ingredients but would estimate it to be roughly the same as yours.
1/2 cup mayo and 2 tbs sugar..vanilla optional
I use 1/2 cup mayonnaise and 1 small container of cool whip.
I really wanted to make a Waldorf Salad for Christmas dinner, but knew my daughter and son in law wouldn’t eat mayonnaise. I was thrilled to find your version with the vanilla yogurt. Everyone liked it and there were no leftovers. Thanks!
Made it tonight for the first time and my family loved it
My mother added rotini or farfalle noodles to it.
My mother always had Waldorf Salad every Thanksgiving and Christmas. She would use mayo too but one year she used some Cool Whip with a little dollop of sour cream.We loved it! She would always toast her nuts in the oven for added flavor and add a pinch of salt wether she used mayo or cool whip. We loved the salad either way!
If you are making this wonderful dish a day ahead of time; can you put the yogurt on one day again, or is it better to wait a few hours before severin.
I was wondering the same thing.
How many servings is this?
I saw your recipe and couldn’t resist. Just stirred it up for our family dinner tomorrow and sneaked a taste. This has wowed me! The yogurt and grapes are a wonderful addition. The only change I made was pecans instead of walnuts because that’s what I had wo thumbs up.
I love creative food ideas and this one is no joke… looks soooo good! Great recipe xo
This is the perfect recipe to bring to Thanksgiving dinner! Thanks for sharing it with us at Merry Monday this week!
This would be a wonderful salad for Thanksgiving.It’s so colorful and makes a beautiful presentation. I think everyone loves Waldorf salad and I like your lighter version.