This grape salad recipe is an easy side dish or dessert salad is quickly a hit anytime you serve it. The creamy dressing is full of flavor with cream cheese and sour cream, and add the sweetness of the grapes and top it off with pecans and brown sugar and it’s to die for!
It’s a cool, refreshing treat that’s popular at Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas! How’s that for being popular?!
You might also like our strawberry pretzel salad. It’s sweet and salty all at the same time.
Grape Salad Recipe
What is grape salad anyway? It’s an old-fashioned side dish that contains whole grapes covered with a creamy dressing and topped with nuts and brown sugar.
The first time I ever had grape salad was when my best friend made it for a get together at her house. She served this side dish that was full of grapes and brown sugar and it was divine. Everyone loved it and I had to get the recipe for it right then and there.
It’s been in my recipe binder ever since.
Grape Salad Ingredients
Cream cheese – this will make the “sauce” extra creamy. Leave your cream cheese out to come to room temperature to make mixing easier.
Sour cream – this adds a little tang, and thins out the thickness of the cream cheese so it will become more of a dressing.
Sugar – use regular granulated sugar to add sweetness.
Brown sugar – we add brown sugar to add another depth of sweetness in the dressing.
Vanilla – I like to always use pure vanilla extract instead of imitation. You really can taste the difference.
Green and red grapes – Be sure to remove all stems and wash and pat dry the grapes. We like to use two different grapes not only for the flavor combination, but for added color as well.
Pecans – add chopped pecans to give another texture, flavor, and that crunch that will put this dish over the top.
How to Make Grape Salad
Oh my, this recipe is so stinkin’ easy. Here’s how it goes:
- Beat cream cheese and sour cream with electric mixer until smooth. You can try to do this by hand, but the mixer will get it super smooth. You don’t want any lumps.
- Add sugar, and vanilla and mix until incorporated.
- Wash and try the grapes and remove all of the stems. Add the grapes into the bowl and fold into the cream cheese mixture.
- Fold until grapes are covered in the dressing. Add pecans. Refrigerate for one hour or overnight.
- Just before serving, sprinkle with brown sugar and extra pecans.
Tips for Making This Grape Salad Recipe
- use red and green grapes to get a variety of flavor, but also to add color to this salad
- be sure your cream cheese is room temperature or it won’t mix well
- leave the grapes whole to keep it easy, or cut them in half if you’re serving little ones
- use regular fat cream cheese, low-fat cream cheese will tend to make the dressing thinner
- try different nuts. You can use pecans, walnuts, or even slivered almonds
- some grape salad recipes have you put the brown sugar on before you chill. This is perfectly fine, but will make the brown sugar “melt” into the dressing. Sometimes I prefer it this way and give it a stir before serving.
- be sure to chill the salad before serving. This allows for the dressing flavors to meld together
Ingredients
- 8 oz. cream cheese room temperature
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 pounds green grapes needles (rinsed and dried)
- 2 pounds red grapes seedless (rinsed and dried)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup pecans chopped
Instructions
- Beat cream cheese, sour cream with electric mixer until smooth.
- Add sugar, and vanilla until incorporated.
- Remove stems from grapes, and fold into the cream cheese mixture. Fold until grapes are covered in mixture. Add pecans. Refrigerate for one hour or overnight.
- Just before serving, sprinkle with brown sugar and pecans.
ABOUT ALICIA: Alicia is the founder of Balancing Motherhood.com. Last year, she managed to stay sane while completing an MBA, working full-time, blogging, and still baking amazing birthday cakes — all while raising a young family at home.
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