Traditional Appalachian Ambrosia | 2 Recipes

In this video I discuss the tradition of eating Ambrosia at Christmas in Appalachia and throughout the south.

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[mageetu]

My mother, who grew up in east Texas, always made "ambrosia" for our Christmas dinner and served it in pretty little cut-glass short-stemmed glasses. She made hers with orange sections and coconut. It was slightly juicy and had just one maraschino cherry on the top of each glass as I recall. I'm 81 yrs old now but can still see it in my mind's eye! Now that you have reminded me of Mother's Christmas ambrosia, I am going to make it for the family this year for our Christmas eve gathering! I enjoy your programs and wish your family a merry Christmas.!

[jannyleigh]

I am from the deepest most southern part of texas. We had this every year but my momma used canned mandarin oranges and coconut from the bag. Delicious!

[kathybuchanan]

We always make ambrosia for Thanksgiving and Christmas. My mother in law was born in South Georgia but raised in North Florida. We make her version which is very similar to the first recipe you read. Oranges and coconut but she (and we) add chopped pecans, a little orange juice. No coconut milk but I may try that 😋 Alice Kathryn would have been 96 in July but passed away last year. She taught me many old school recipes and I am grateful to have known her.

[susanrobinson]

We have this every year and we've always called it "5 cup salad" 1 cup each of pineapple, mandarin oranges, tiny marsh mellows, coconut, and sour cream.

[UnfrozenCavemanLawyer]

My mother made fruit salad with fresh oranges, apples, bananas, grapes and walnuts. No coconut, no creamy ingredient and no sugar. My mother-in-law, however made a salad with Mandarin oranges, crushed pineapple, Cool-whip, small curd cottage cheese, and orange-pineapple Jell-o powder. She would mix it all together and chill it. I had never had canned Mandarin oranges until my mother-in-law entered my life. It was like a whole new food world, and she taught me to make all of her good food! Thanks for sharing these recipes. Oh, by the way, I love Westerns too. I like all of the TV ones you mentioned, especially Gunsmoke, and John Wayne westerns too. ❤️

[comfortcreekranch]

N. E. Texas my Mom always made ambrosia salad, like yours.
When I would go to my Mother's she and I would always watch her westerns too, and we would crochet together. Towards her last days, we listened to an Audio book together, Little Women.
We both loved that and looked forward to each next chapter, and crochet as much as she was able. We did finish the book. These are sweet memories I have of our time together.

[leonardgordon]

My Aunt would always make the Ambrosia fruit salad for the holidays when all the family got together. Hers was very sweet with pineapple as the principle ingredient with some mandarin oranges and the coconut as more secondary ingredients. The tropical flavors were always a big hit in the winter months. Thank you for sharing your memories.

[ohnonichole]

This video was a huge surprise for me because outsideof my very northern family, I neversaw anyone else make this. My French Canadian grandmother made a version of your "Ambrosia Fruit Salad" every year for the family holiday which started with similar fruits like you had (although might have varied from year to year depending upon what was available in her remote part of the world), BUT she didn't add sour cream or marshmallows. The French Canadian recipe would make it with homemade heavy whipping cream beaten stiff with a little sugar so as to not overpower the fruits. It very rarely made it beyond a day before being eaten up. Very excited to see this elsewhere!

[amyd]

My aunt, who passed many years ago, made her ambrosia with sour cream, marshmallows, sweetened coconut flakes, crushed pineapple, and mandarin oranges. She taught me how to make it so many years ago as a kid and I've become the ambrosia maker in the family. This dessert brings back so many memories of family holidays and time spent with my aunt.

[johnb.]

Your version seems like a dessert that my mom used to make.

She calls it 'Five cup salad' because it's five ingredients, one cup of each:

Canned pineapple chunks

Canned Mandarin oranges

Maraschino cherries

Marshmallows

Sour cream

She'd mix it all together, and it was better after a night in the fridge.

But it wasn't strictly a Christmas thing. We'd have it at Christmas, for sure, but it was also a dessert at family reunions, cookouts, and picnics. Really nice and cool in the summertime.

I really enjoyed it, and I really miss it.

I enjoy your videos.

Take care, ma'am.

[AngieW]

When I was growing up in Tennessee my mom made Ambrosia with the same fruits and marsgmallows that you did. But she used walnuts, (sometimes pecans) maraschino cherries, mayonaise and honey instead of the sour cream and sugar. She also added extra orange juice if there wasn’t enough from the fresh oranges. She likrd to make it a couple of days before Christmas and refrigerate it so the flavors of each item mesh together thoroughly. It was a special treat that we usually only had at Christmas and Easter. We loved it and there was usually not enough or any left for leftovers. Thank you for reminding me of those happy and simpler times. Wishing you and your family a happy and blessed Christmas. God bless you!

[valerielanford]

I live in central Texas. We always made the “fruit salad” exactly like your second recipe. It was a family favorite. My mama called it Millionaire Salad.

[pat_in_va]

My father's mother (Grandmama to us) always made "Ambrosia" for the "Big Three" holidays of Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving (fruit salad style) when we were all going to be spending the holiday at her house in Waco, Texas. My mother's mother (Mammaw) made a classic Waldorf salad for the holidays at her house just down the road in Temple, Texas (Central Texas area). Between the two of them, we had about all the fruits and nuts covered in salad form!

[cweaver]

My best friend's mom always made this at Christmas and called it "Angel Salad" -my favorite, mandarin oranges, pineapple, coconut, maraschino cherries, (sometimes she just used fruit cocktail), nuts, cool whip and then mini marshmallows and little pieces of cream cheese. The cream cheese is what made this special. Seeing you, Tipper and now remembering my "second mom" making this makes me want to just fix some up!

[his-sweetie]

My family did not eat ambrosia. Your family's traditional salad looks amazing and gives me an idea. Thanks for sharing♥️

[ruthdavis]

Tipper, you are such a good reader. I bet those pretty girls grew up being read to so lovingly. I am a librarian, I know! A reader is never bored, not that you would be bored in your busy lives. Love for reading is passed on.

[phyllisalexander]

Yes Tipper, you're making the "TRUE AMBROSIA." I'VE LOOKED FOR THIS RECIPE FOREVER. I knew the ingredients but not the measurements. It is so delicious. I loved the freshly grated coconut. The only difference I see is we always segmented the oranges instead of slicing them. I can't remember whether we used any sugar or not. Thanks for another great video. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY .
Jeri Whittaker 12/16/2021
Ps I watch all those same westerns too. I have never cared for soap operas!

[karenstewart]

I think my mom got tired as the years of raising 7 kids went by, but I remember our Christmas time fruit salad being a mix of canned and fresh fruit. She'd add oranges, occasionally grapefruit (Blech!), apples, cherries, and walnuts to the drained canned fruit and then mix cool whip in it and there was hardly any leftovers. For the most part, these are the ingredients for most of the Ambrosia recipes I've seen, but I will delve into my collection of cookbooks, to see if I can find one similar to Mr. Ray's. When I have a day off from work during the week, I also watch the westerns on MeTv or Grit. Such fun to just sit, knit, and watch. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

[amyc]

The ambrosia with just oranges and coconut does sound simple and refreshing.
Before watching your video, I made the fruit salad I’ve been eating for 64 years. It consists of 2 oranges, 1 apple, and 1 banana, all diced, some chopped pecans, and then everything is sprinkled with sugar and a big spoonful of mayonnaise stirred in. A true comfort food for me.

[cherrobbs]

Yup, I grew up having Ambrosia at Christmas and Easter. I guess we really had fruit salad according to John Parris but it was wonderful and a labor of love from the cooks who were my grandma and my moma.