Refreshing Frozen Fruit Salad

A frozen fruit salad that slices like a terrine and tastes like a creamy, fruity sherbet. Strawberry Jello dissolved in boiling water, mixed with pink lemonade concentrate, folded with whipped topping and loaded with sliced peaches, green grapes, bananas, and maraschino cherries.

The Jello and frozen lemonade concentrate work together to create a base that freezes firm enough to slice but stays soft and creamy rather than icy. The gelatin prevents the formation of large ice crystals, so the texture is smooth, not grainy.

Chilling the Jello mixture until slightly thickened before adding the whipped topping is a step you can’t skip. If the Jello is too warm, it melts the whipped topping and you lose all the airiness that makes this salad light. Too firm and it won’t blend smoothly. You want a consistency like raw egg whites.

The fruit gets folded in last so it stays in distinct pieces throughout each slice. Stirring too aggressively breaks the bananas and crushes the grapes.

Kitchen Tips

• Drain the canned peaches thoroughly. Excess juice thins the base and prevents it from setting firmly.
• Slice the bananas thick, about 1 inch. Thin slices turn to mush when frozen and thawed.
• Unmold by dipping the pan briefly in warm water, then inverting onto a plate. A hot towel draped over the pan works too.

Variations

• Use sugar-free Jello and lite whipped topping for a lighter version.
• Swap peaches for canned mandarin oranges and add fresh strawberries for a brighter color palette.
• Add ½ cup of chopped pecans for a crunchy contrast to the creamy frozen base.