Strawberry Fluff Recipe with Jell-O and Cool Whip (2024)

Posted: December 31, 2023 Updated: March 2, 2024 by Rebekah S. 11 Comments

This Strawberry Fluff recipe with Jell-O and cool whip is an easy dessert salad to make for any occasion. Enjoy the sweet treat of juicy strawberries and the fluffy texture of cool whip.

I grew up in the Midwest and the term “salad” is used interchangeably with a lettuce salad and any mixture of fruit and cool whip. This strawberry fluff recipe is from my grandma and traditionally our family calls it “yum yum salad”. We love it so much we serve it as a side dish during dinner. This delicious recipe is perfect for family gatherings or special occasions: Easter dinner, baby shower (especially for a girl), summer BBQs, church dinner (I promise it will be a potluck favorite).

Tools I recommend:

• Large bowl
• Small saucepan
• Whisk
• Spatula

Find all of myfavorite kitchen tools here!

Strawberry Fluff Salad Ingredients:

• Jell-O Cook & Serve Tapioca
• Strawberry gelatin
• Cold water
• Cool Whip – 8 oz container
• Strawberries – frozen strawberries or fresh strawberries will work

Try out these other desserts:

Rich and Fudgy Chocolate Espresso Brownies Recipe

Delicious Fudgy Chocolate Cookies with 3 Ingredients

High Altitude Pecan Pie

Best High Altitude Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

High Altitude Oatmeal Cookies

How to make Strawberry Fluff Salad:

1. Cook the jello and tapioca

In a small saucepan add the cold water, strawberry jello, and tapioca. Stir frequently and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute and then remove from the heat.

2. Cut up the strawberries

While the jello and tapioca are cooling. Cut up the strawberries.

3. Cool it down

Pour the jello and tapioca mixture into your large bowl. Add the strawberries. Place the bowl into the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until it sets.

4. Add the cool whip

Use a whisk to stir the jello, tapioca, and strawberries. Gently add the cool whip to the mixture until there are no white streaks.

5. Enjoy!

Add some strawberries to the top for a little garnish and serve.

Ingredient Variations & Substitutions

• Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix – Replacing the tapioca with vanilla pudding mix can be done easily. The vanilla pudding will create a smoother texture and add a hint of vanilla to the flavor. If you decide to use instant pudding the whole recipe can be made in one bowl.
  • In a large bowl combine the strawberry jello and 1 cup of boiling water. Stir until it’s combined. Add 1/2 cup of cold water and stir. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
  • Add the instant vanilla pudding mix to the jello and stir until combined. Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
• Mini Marshmallows – for an extra special sweet treat. Add 1 cup of mini marshmallows.
• Variety of Different Flavors of Jello – switch up the jello flavor and the fresh fruit for delicious new dessert fluff recipes. Try out peach jello or raspberry jello for a new fruit flavor. Or add citrus with mandarin oranges and make orange fluff salad. Create a whole new jello salad recipe by using pistachio jello to make pistachio fluff salad
• Pineapple – add crushed pineapple or pineapple chunks to elevate the strawberry flavor with some tangy flavor
• Nuts – Add in almonds, walnuts, or chopped pecans for an extra bit of crunch
• Strawberry Pie filling – use strawberry pie filling instead of strawberries
• Large Group or more servings – this recipe can easily be doubled, noted that a very large bowl will be needed to stir all the ingredients together. My suggestion would be to make this recipe twice in two containers to ensure all the ingredients get stirred together well.
• Cool Whip – I would suggest only using cool whip instead of homemade whipping cream. Cool whip is a lot more stable and will help create a better texture.

Storage:

• Make ahead – this strawberry jello fluff salad can be made 1 day in advance. Store in covered in the refrigerator.
• Storage – any leftover salad can be stored in the refrigerator covered tightly with plastic wrap or in an airtight container. The strawberries will continue to leak juice so the texture will become slightly runny, because of this I would suggest eating any leftovers in 2-3 days.
• Freezing – freezing will completely change the texture of the strawberry fluff salad, so I would suggest not freezing it.

Serve Strawberry Fluff Salad along with these main dishes:

Dairy-Free Chicken Noodle Soup – Gluten-Free Option

Easy Leftover Pork Chop Recipe Dairy Free With Rice

Easy Cast Iron Pork Chops – Gluten and Dairy Free

Spicy Chinese Chicken 3 Ingredient Chili Garlic Sauce

Easy Grilled Chicken Alfredo Recipe – 3 Ingredients

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

High Altitude Strawberry Fluff Salad:

Good news! There is no need to make any changes to ingredients when making this at high altitude. I make this at 8,000 feet of elevation without any problems.

If you make this delicious Strawberry Fluff leave a comment below and let me know how they turned out. If you have any questions, post them below and I would love to help you out.