Creamy and rich, this red white and blue cheesecake salad is characterized by a sweet-tangy cream cheese swirl packed with fresh fruit perfect for a sweet summer dessert!
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Pin RecipeIf you’re looking for a colorful dessert to bring to the neighborhood Independence Day gathering, it’s this unique dessert salad here.
Yes! A salad can be served for dessert as long as it’s sweet!
The fluffy, creamy cheesecake-inspired filling is swirled with blueberries and strawberries and gets a bit of soft texture from pillowy mini marshmallows. Serve this one on the 4th of July or bring it to BBQs all summer long.
Festive Cheesecake Salad Recipe
This pretty fruit salad is a little bit like a trifle but without the ladyfingers or other cookies. It’s definitely a salad that’s meant for the sweets course—you won’t find any greens in this recipe! I love to serve a big bowl of cheesecake salad with other no-bake desserts like Snickers Salad, Strawberry Jello Pie or No Bake Oreo Cheesecake. Or you could make a sponge cake or angel food cake and serve slices with a big dollop of cheesecake salad alongside.
And while this patriotic cheesecake salad seems meant for Independence Day celebrations, there’s no reason you couldn’t serve it at a casual weeknight dinner or a picnic lunch. It travels well, so you can easily pack it up and bring it along to a potluck. Make a batch of Lemon Crinkle Cookies and you’ll be all set.
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Ingredients for Cheesecake Salad
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Cream cheese – To form the cheesecake base of the salad.
- Cool Whip – For lots of rich creaminess and to give the cheesecake structure.
- Sugar – Sugar definitely makes this a dessert salad!
- Vanilla extract – I use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
- Milk – You can use whole milk or 2% milk in this recipe.
- Blueberries – Fresh berries are best, rather than frozen.
- Strawberries – Try to use strawberries that are ripe and slightly firm so that they will hold up well in the salad.
- Mini marshmallows – These add little pillowy pockets of texture.
- Whipped cream (optional) – If you like, top the salad with whipped cream for an extra treat.
Quick Tip
If you would like to make this salad with whipped cream instead of Cool Whip, simply substitute 8 ounces of sweetened, homemade whipped cream or store-bought whipped cream for the Cool Whip.
How to Make Cheesecake Salad
- Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer: In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Mix in the sugar and vanilla: Add the sugar and vanilla extract to the bowl, and continue to beat until well combined.
- Add the milk: Pour the milk into the bowl and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Fold in the Cool Whip: Fold the Cool Whip into the cream cheese mixture.
- Add in the fruit and mini marshmallows: Gently fold in the blueberries, strawberries, and mini marshmallows.
- Chill: Refrigerate the mixture for at least 2 hours or until chilled.
- Serve: Before serving, add whipped cream on top (if desired).
Quick Tip
You can make this salad up to 48 hours in advance of serving. Store it in a bowl, tightly covered with plastic, or in an airtight container in the fridge. Serve chilled.
How to Store Cheesecake Salad
Store cheesecake salad in a bowl tightly covered with plastic or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Serve cold.
Serving Suggestions
Here are a few of my favorite dishes to serve alongside red, white, and blue cheesecake:
- With pound cake – Try my Cream Cheese Pound Cake or Pound Cake from Cake Mix recipes—either would go really nicely with this salad!
- With other cheesecake – If you love cheesecake like me, it’s fun to serve a few different kinds. Along with cheesecake salad, my No-Bake Lemon Cream Cheesecake, No-Bake Blueberry Cheesecake, or No-Bake Chocolate Cheesecake recipes are some of my favorites.
- With other cold desserts – Desserts that have the fridge do a lot of the work are the best! My 3-Ingredient Strawberry Icebox Cake is a dream of a dessert that would be delicious paired with a dessert salad. Or make my Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake, which is a mix of both.
FAQs
A dessert salad can be made with Jello, whipped toppings, fruits, vegetables, mayonnaise, and any other ingredients that you’d like!
A fruit salad makes a wonderful dessert, or you could make a sweet dessert salad, like this cheesecake salad.
Cheesecakes are baked custards, typically made from a soft cheese like cream cheese, eggs, sugar, and a few flavorings, placed atop a cookie or pastry base.
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Red White And Blue Cheesecake Salad
Ingredients
- 1 8-ounce package cream cheese
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup milk
- 8 ounces thawed Cool Whip
- 1 cup blueberries
- ½ cup strawberries, chopped
- ½ cup mini marshmallows
- Whipped cream (optional)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Add the sugar and vanilla extract to the bowl, and continue to beat until well combined.
- Pour the milk into the bowl and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Fold the Cool Whip into the cream cheese mixture.
- Gently fold in the blueberries, strawberries, and mini marshmallows.
- Refrigerate the mixture for at least 2 hours or until chilled.
- Before serving, add whipped cream on top (if desired).
I love this idea! It looks and sounds amazing! I haven’t made it yet, but I will be doing that soon. I already know I am going to love it! Thank you for sharing this!