This easy recipe is one of those old school desserts that's a potluck favorite anywhere you happen to take it!
Table of Contents
❤️ Why you'll love it
- This vintage pineapple dessert is a great side dish or perfect dessert to have at potlucks or bring to summer picnics!
- It's easy to make, looks delicious, and is bursting with tropical flavors plus it only needs simple ingredients.
- This is one of my favorite old-school desserts that you'll be wanting to make this recipe again and again!
No bake desserts are perfect for almost any time of the year! This easy recipe is often called a "salad" in the midwest - and who am I to argue?
My mom had an entire category in her recipe box for these recipes - orange cream salad and cherry junkyard salad are other family favorites from my mom's old recipe box.
Personally, I call this a salad so I can still enjoy this easy lemon fudge for dessert.
🧾 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients for this pineapple fluff recipe. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
🔪 Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Cream together cream cheese and granulated sugar.
- Fold in pineapple and whipped topping.
- Bake pretzels, melted butter, and brown sugar for 7 minutes in a preheated oven.
- Once the crust is cool, top with cream cheese mixture and then chill for at least one hour. Four hours is better.
🥫 Storage
Store this pineapple pretzel fluff in the fridge for up to three days in an airtight container or in a bowl covered with plastic wrap.
Pineapple fluff doesn't freeze well at all!
📖 Variations
- Fold in mini marshmallows to add some additional sweetness to this sweet treat.
- Use Extra Creamy Cool Whip to add even more richness!
- Toasted coconut or sweetened coconut flakes are some fun ways to add more flavor to this dessert.
- Add protein to this dish by putting cottage cheese into the cream cheese and sugar mixture.
- Change up the flavor of this dish by using maraschino cherries, mandarin oranges, or even strawberries instead of pineapple.
- Try using this fluff mixture as a filling in the strawberry angel food cake .
💭 Tips
Expert Tip: Make this easy, no-bake dessert at least 4 hours ahead of time so it has time to chill completely.
- Add the crunchy pretzel topping just before serving.
- A dash of lemon juice would add a bright flavor to the pineapple mixture.
- No Cool Whip? Try my copycat Cool Whip recipe!
- For the best results make sure that the cream cheese is at room temperature before you start making your filling.
- Top this pineapple fluff salad with more crushed pretzels, toasted pecans or your favorite crunchy topping.
👩🍳 FAQs
It can be stored in the fridge for up to three days.
Absolutely! I've done it successfully but you have to be very careful to cut the pineapple small and to let some of the juice drain off on paper towels - maybe 5 minutes.
Yes, homemade whipped cream is a great healthy substitution for this recipe.
You can make this easy dessert up to one full day ahead of serving. After that you start losing the fluffy texture.
📚 Related recipes
- Banana Pudding is creamy, refreshing, and makes for the perfect southern dessert.
- Fluffernutter Whoopie Pie Cookies are soft baked cookies that are filled with a fluffy peanut butter filling.
- Strawberry Butter is sweet, creamy, and tastes amazing on a biscuit or piece of toast.
- Lemon Ice Box Cake
- 10 No-Bake Southern Desserts
- Old Fashioned Banana Pudding
- 97 Easter Desserts So Good, the Easter Bunny Might Steal Your Plate
🍽️ Serve with...
- Bacon-Wrapped BBQ Chicken is a delicious grill night recipe that the entire family will enjoy.
- Cheesy Ranch Foil Grilled Potatoes are a simple side dish that makes for easy clean-up.
- Cucumber Salad is a fresh, no-cook side dish that is perfect for potlucks and cookouts.
🥄 Restless Chipotle recommends...
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You'll need the following items to make this recipe successfully.
- large bowl
- mixer
- pretzels
- butter
- light brown sugar
- granulated sugar
- cream cheese
- crushed pineapple
- Cool Whip
📞 The last word
My mom was from Michigan and to her this was a side dish - and honestly that was just fine with me. In fact, on the very stained recipe card the title reads, Pineapple Fluff Salad recipe.
I tend to consider it a dessert but either way it's delicious!
If you love pineapple as much as I do try this grilled pineapple! It can be a side dish or a dessert - and that's my favorite kind of recipe.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need. Don't forget that you can click on "add to collection" to save it to your own, private recipe box!
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Pineapple Fluff
Print Pin Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup pretzels, coarsely crushed
- ½ cup butter, melted
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 20 ounces crushed pineapple, well drained
- 4-½ cups Cool Whip, thawed
Instructions
Pretzel Brittle
- Preheat oven to 400°.
- Mix pretzels, melted butter and ½ cup brown sugar.
- Press into a 13x9-inch pan that's been sprayed with no stick spray or lined with parchment.
- Bake 7 minutes.
- Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
Pineapple Fluff
- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and granulated sugar until well blended and the sugar crystals are mostly gone.
- Gently fold in pineapple and whipped topping.
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour. Four hours is recommended.
- Just before serving crumble the pretzel mixture and stir into the fluff, saving some for garnishing the top.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- Chill at least 4 hours for best results.
- Add the pretzel brittle and crunchy pretzel topping just before serving.
- A dash of lemon juice would add a bright flavor to the pineapple mixture.
- No Cool Whip? Try my copycat Cool Whip recipe!
- For the best results make sure that the cream cheese is at room temperature before you start making your filling.
- Top this pineapple fluff salad with more crushed pretzels, toasted pecans or your favorite crunchy topping.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
First published February 15, 2022. Last updated March 20, 2023 to update information and some technical stuff.
Jenny says
My family loved this! Will be making it for Christmas
Jennifer McInnis says
When it give more flavor or be okay to add a package of Island pineapple jello to the cream cheese and sugar when mixing it? I think it would replace part of the sugar. What are your thoughts?
Marye says
I've never tried to do that so I'm not sure how it would work.