Prepare a refreshing summer salad with this Creamy Grape Salad recipe. It’s a dessert-style salad that you can serve as a snack when you’re in the mood for something sweet yet semi-healthy. This salad is the perfect side dish for summer BBQs, potlucks, and family get-togethers. It’s a staple that we love to enjoy during the warmer months.
Do you have a craving for something sweet and slightly healthy? If so, you should prepare this Grape Fruit Salad sprinkled with brown sugar and pecans. It is a creamy, sweet, and flavorful salad that is perfect to serve in the summer. While it’s a great summer salad, you can make it all year long, it’s always a hit at parties and perfect for any family event.
If you love dessert salads, try my orange Jello salad, watergate salad, ambrosia salad, and this carrot raisin salad next!
Grape Salad Dressing
If you’re not sure, Creamy Grape Salad consists of two different types of grapes. You’ll combine both red grapes and green grapes with a homemade cheesecake dressing to make a sweet and simple fruit salad. Once you make it, you can leave it in the fridge and wait for it to get cold before serving it. You can expect it to be a huge hit.
The cheesecake-like dressing is so simple, mainly made with cream cheese but also lightened up with sour cream for a super creamy and refreshing dressing. It’s sweet but not overly sweet, it’s not too thick, and creates the best texture for a creamy salad.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple ingredients. It doesn’t take much to make this recipe. You’ll only need a handful of ingredients to prepare it.
- Semi-healthy. It is a sweet dessert that you can serve as a treat when you want to indulge while still consuming some fruit.
- Perfect for sharing. You can make this recipe for Grape Salad for the family or for a special event, such as a picnic, family barbecue, or birthday party.
Ingredients Used to Make the Creamy Grape Salad
To make this salad with grapes, you’ll need to have the following ingredients ready to use:
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Cream Cheese. You’ll need at least four ounces of cream cheese for this salad that is softened to room temperature. I like to use Philadelphia cream cheese, but for a reduced-fat option go for Neufchàtel cream cheese.
- Sugar. Add sugar to the cream cheese to give it a sweeter taste.
- Sour Cream. It might sound strange, but the addition of sour cream leaves this salad with more flavor and texture. Want a healthier alternative? Use Greek yogurt!
- Vanilla Extract. Add a bit of pure vanilla extract into your mixture for extra flavor.
- Seedless Green and Seedless Grapes (washed and dried). Be sure to rinse the grapes before you add them to the cream cheese mixture, also make sure that they’re seedless!
- Brown Sugar. This gets sprinkled on top of the salad to add a touch of sweetness and a little bit of color.
- Chopped Pecans. The chopped and toasted pecans add a crunchy element to this salad. They are added to the top along with the brown sugar. You can also substitute walnuts here as well.
How to Make the Creamy Grape Salad
- Prepare the dressing: Prepare the Cream Cheese Grape Salad by grabbing a mixing bowl and adding your cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla, and sugar to a bowl, mixing well.
- Add the grapes: In a large bowl, toss your grapes into the cream cheese blend and gently fold them to cover.
- Top and chill: Sprinkle brown sugar and chopped pecans on top of the salad before placing it in the fridge to chill for at least an hour before serving. The brown sugar will dissolve, so make sure to give it a stir before serving. I also like to sprinkle with additional topping right before serving for an extra crunch!
How to Toast Pecans
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Arrange pecans in a single layer on a quarter sheet pan, and toast for 7-10 minutes stirring occasionally until lightly browned and toasted.
Tip!
Do NOT walk away as you toast the pecans as they can burn easily.
How to Soften Cream Cheese
Unwrap the cream cheese block and remove all of the packaging. Place on a plate, and microwave on high for 8-10 seconds (per 4 ounces of cream cheese). Or, just take the cream cheese out of the fridge 30 minutes prior to using.
Recipe Success Tips
- Make sure to mix your cream cheese with the sugar, vanilla, and sour cream before you add your grapes into the mix. You want these ingredients to blend perfectly beforehand.
- Allow your cream cheese to soften a bit before using it. It will mix more evenly when it’s softened.
- For a lighter salad dressing substitute the sour cream with Greek yogurt.
- Make sure you let the salad chill in the fridge for at least one hour before serving because it tastes best when cold.
- Have little ones that are going to be eating the salad? Slice the grapes in half horizontally or lengthwise so they can easily enjoy this salad with everyone else.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can prepare the salad as per the instructions without adding the topping, and store in the fridge for 3-5 days. Add the topping right before serving.
While the topping is optional, it tastes great with the grapes and cream cheese blend.
If you don’t want to use pecans for the topping, you can use chopped peanuts, walnuts, or macadamia nuts. They’ll add the same great crunchy texture to the Creamy Grape Salad.
Other Summer Desserts to Try
We love this easy grape salad recipe, but sometimes you need more than one summer dessert to enjoy. Here are a few of my other favorite easy desserts to enjoy during the summer:
This Grape Salad is a family favorite that we tend to make and enjoy year-round. It is the perfect summer salad, but it’s also great for any family event or potluck no matter the time of the year. It’s simple to make, with only 7 common ingredients. I hope you make this grape salad recipe today!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Creamy Grape Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened to room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 pound seedless green grapes rinsed and patted dry, about 2-2.5 cups
- 1 pound seedless red grapes rinsed and patted dry, about 2-2.5 cups
Topping:
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons chopped pecans
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat softened cream cheese with sour cream, sugar, and vanilla, until creamy.
- Add the grapes to the creamy mixture, and toss until the grapes are well coated.
- Top with chopped pecans and brown sugar.
- Chill in the fridge at least one hour before serving, preferably overnight.
Notes:
- This recipe serves 6-8.
- Make sure to mix your cream cheese with the sugar, vanilla, and sour cream before you add your grapes into the mix. You want these ingredients to blend perfectly beforehand.
- Allow your cream cheese to soften before using.
- For a lighter salad dressing substitute the sour cream with Greek yogurt.
- Let the salad chill in the fridge for at least one hour before serving because it tastes best when cold.
- Slice the grapes in half horizontally or lengthwise if you’re feeding little ones.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
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