Description
Frog Eye Salad is the perfect dessert for wowing your kids, their friends, and adults who still act like kids. Now, before you start imagining little froggies bouncing around, don’t worry, no amphibians were harmed in the making of this salad. It’s all about the fun name and the delightful flavors that come together in this quirky dish. It’s made with small cooked pasta, Acini De Pepe, that feel like “frog eyes” in the dessert. Not only is Frog Eye Salad wonderfully fun, it’s also incredibly delicious, packed with fruit and cream. Trust me, once you try it, you’ll be croaking for more!
Ingredients
- 1 (20-ouce) can crushed pineapple
- 1 (20-ounce) can fruit mix/cocktail
- 1 (16-ounce) jar maraschino cherries, rinsed until water runs clear then drained
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon gluten free flour
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 cup Acini De Pepe pasta, cooked according to package directions and rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 2 (15-ounce) cans mandarin orange segments, well drained (optional)
- 1/4 cup toasted coconut, for garnish (optional)
- maraschino cherries with stems, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Place a mesh strainer over a medium bowl. Drain the crushed pineapple and fruit mix in the strainer, pressing out as much liquid as possible.
- Transfer the fruit to a small bowl and reserve 1 cup of the drained liquid.
- In a medium saucepan, completely whisk the sugar and flour together, then whisk in the reserved liquid, egg and salt until combined.
- Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon around 6-7 minutes.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes until completely cooled.
- Beat the whipped cream until frothy, then gradually add the powdered sugar and beat until very stiff peaks form.
- Place the pasta in a large mixing bowl. Pour the cooled custard over the pasta and stir to combine.
- Mix in the drained fruit and mandarin oranges.
- Fold in around a cup of the whipped cream to lighten the pasta/fruit, then gently fold in the rest of the cream (see note).
- Add the maraschino cherries and stir to combine.
- Transfer to individual dessert cups, then top with toasted coconut (optional) and maraschino cherries with stems.
Notes
Make sure to whisk the sugar and flour together until completely blended. This will help keep any flour lumps from forming in the fruit custard.
For a less creamy Frog Eye Salad, reserve 1 cup of the whipped cream to use as a garnish when serving.
It’s really good after it’s been refrigerated for a while. It’s good served immediately, but better if it’s been thoroughly chilled.
While I use an assortment of fruits in my recipe for Frog Eye Salad, you can absolutely use only pineapple, leave out the cherries or mandarin oranges. I would make sure to keep the same proportion of fruit though.
Make sure to thoroughly drain any fruit. Excess liquid is the nemesis of Frog Eye Salad.
I haven’t used fresh fruit in Frog Eye Salad, so I can’t really say whether it would work or not…I might be afraid that it would leech liquid after a time.
I used gluten free Acini De Pepe. If you can’t find it, then you can substitute gluten free cous cous or another very small pasta. It won’t be the same, but it probably would still be delicious.
Make sure to completely chill the custard through before adding it to the pasta. If you don’t the heat will melt the whipped cream when you fold it in.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 282
- Sugar: 32.8 g
- Sodium: 548.4 mg
- Fat: 13.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 5.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 41.8 g
- Fiber: 4.7 g
- Protein: 2.9 g
- Cholesterol: 38.9 mg
