Orange Fluff Jello Salad is a fun and fruity dish everyone will love. Orange Jello is combined with pineapple chunks, mandarin oranges, cottage cheese, and fluffy whipped cream. It is the perfect jello salad to serve for dinner or bring to your next potluck.
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Table of Contents
What is Orange Fluff?
Orange Fluff is a retro Jello salad served as either a side dish or dessert. It’s made with mandarin oranges, crushed pineapple, orange Jello gelatin, cottage cheese, and whipped cream.
It’s a popular dish, especially for Easter and in spring. It’s fluffy, fruity, and pairs beautifully with an Easter ham and smoked meats.
Why This is the Best Recipe for Orange Fluff
One of the best things about this recipe is that it forms the perfect consistency where you can put it in a mold and it will hold its shape. You can dress it up or dress it down and just put it in a bowl and pop it in the fridge.
Why is this Orange Fluff Jello recipe different?
For this orange creamsicle fluff salad, you do not use Cool Whip as the base. Instead, this orange jello fluff uses heavy whipping cream which is what will help this orange fluff set up perfectly.
Plus whipped cream stabilizes the fluff enough to be able to use a gelatin mold to create a fun shape and can make it a signature piece at any party.
Recipe Ingredients
This recipe is super simple with only a few ingredients. Take a look to make sure you have everything you need to make an orange fluff jello salad.
- Small curd cottage cheese
- Orange Jello
- Heavy cream
- Mandarin oranges
- Crushed pineapple
Ingredient Notes
Since inventory has been low in the grocery stores, you might have a hard time finding some of the ingredients.
If you are able to score a can of pineapple but not crushed pineapple, just throw it in the food processor and pulse it to chop it up. Strain the pineapple to eliminate the extra juices.
You can use fresh mandarin oranges. Peel them thoroughly to remove all the pith. Also, remove any seeds. Put the orange segments in a food processor to blend them up slightly. Note this will make the mandarin oranges softer like they normally are in the can.
How To Make Orange Fluff Salad
- Start by combining the cottage cheese and orange Jello in a large bowl.
- Add in the drained cans of mandarin oranges and crushed pineapple and mix it all together.
- In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream until it forms stiff peaks.
- Carefully fold the whipped cream into the cottage cheese mixture until it is completely combined.
- Transfer the orange fluff mixture into either a clean bowl or a jello mold and put it in the fridge for at least 6 hours. Overnight is preferred for it to set up properly.
- When you are ready to take the fluff out of the mold, place either the bowl or mold in a hot water bath for about 10 seconds. Place a serving plate over top and flip the orange fluff salad onto it and remove the mold.
Recipe Variations
If you want to make this orange fluff without cottage cheese, try replacing it to make:
- Orange Fluff with Sour Cream
- Orange Fluff with Cream Cheese
- Orange Fluff with Greek Yogurt (plain)
It will not be exactly the same with these substitutions, but they can work.
Here are some tasty add-ins for extra flavor and texture:
- Mini marshmallows for an extra sweet touch and fluffy texture.
- Chopped maraschino cherries for an added flavor profile and even a fun pop of color.
- Chopped nuts for a little crunch and nutty flavor. Pecans or walnuts pair nicely with orange and pineapple.
Can You Make Orange Jello Fluff Ahead of Time?
Yes, in fact, you should! This recipe needs at least 6 hours to set up but turns out best with 10 to 12 hours of chilling in the fridge.
How to Serve Orange Fluff Salad
For this recipe, you can do a couple of things. If you prepared it and chilled it in a bowl, you can always leave it in there and just add a spoon to serve it.
Or you can flip the orange fluff onto a serving plate from either the bowl or Jello mold and serve it. Line the serving plate with lettuce leaves for a special decorative effect.
Garnish the salad with maraschino cherries for a nice pop of color.
What Goes Well With This Dish
Wondering what do you eat with orange fluff? It’s is a light and refreshing side dish and goes wonderfully with ham, brisket, corned beef, and smoked chicken.
It’s also a great dessert served with fruit and whipped cream.
How to Store Orange Jello Fluff
To store this delicious orange jello fluff, cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. This dish must be kept refrigerated.
How Long Does Orange Fluff Salad Last?
Since this recipe does have some unstable ingredients like pineapple, mandarin orange, and heavy cream, this orange fluff will be best if eaten within 2 to 3 days.
Favorite Jello Recipes
Favorite Sweet Side Dish Recipes
- Carrot Pudding
- Fried Apples
- Honey Roasted Carrots
- Microwave Acorn Squash
- Steakhouse Sweet Potato
- Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecans
- Sweet Potato Souffle
- Waldorf Salad
Check out more of my easy side dish recipes and the best salad recipes here on CopyKat!
Orange Fluff Salad
Ingredients
- 16 ounces small-curd cottage cheese
- 1 large package (6 ounces) orange jello
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 can (11 ounces) mandarin oranges drained
- 1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple drained
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the cottage cheese with the Jell-O powder.
- In a separate chilled bowl, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.
- Fold the whipped cream into the gelatin mixture along with the oranges and pineapple.
- Spoon the mixture into a Jello mold that has been rinsed in cold water.
- Let it stand in refrigerator until set, at least six hours or preferably overnight.
- Unmold onto a serving dish lined with lettuce leaves and decorate with cherries.
D. Smith
Love this stuff and you can make it soooo many different ways depending on what flavor jello you use. I have made it with grape jello and it is fantastic.
I’m wondering if you have any recipes for Ribbon Salad which was popular in the 50’s and 60’s? It must be called something else now because I have tried to do a web search for it but nothing that comes up is what I’m looking for. It’s jello (plain) on the bottom, a layer of whipped cream with mayo and other stuff including cottage cheese or ricotta in the middle (except I don’t think they had access to ricotta in the 50’s but maybe) and then another layer of jello (Lime is my favorite).
If ever you run across such a dessert recipe, I’d appreciate if you’d post it. Thanks!
Liz
Loved this! The Mandarin oranges and pinapples together were great.