Aunt Cathie’s Southern Grape Salad
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This quick and easy Southern grape salad recipe includes pecans and grapes covered in a sweet yet creamy dressing. The combination of sweet and savory flavor and texture make this the best grape salad I’ve had… EVER!
Today, I’m sharing a recipe for Aunt Cathie’s Southern grape salad from our friend Shannon. I’m gonna tell you now, this is the best grape salad I have ever had IN MY LIFE. Seriously, folks, this grape salad recipe must have been blessed and prayed over at countless church suppers because that is the only logical explanation for how one dish can taste so good.
Aunt Cathie’s Southern grape salad is perfect for a springtime brunch, bridal or baby shower, or just simply as a treat for yourself or anyone else you love enough to serve this earthly manna to. Make sure you save this recipe, print it off, share it on your Facebook wall, or pin it to your Pinterest boards.
Now, this is a deliciously creamy grape salad. We coat our grapes and pecans in both cream cheese and sour cream. Then we add a little sweetness with vanilla, white sugar, and brown sugar. These ingredients are so simple, so staple, and so normal. But when combined, they become something so wonderful! It’s a little sweet, a little savory, and a lot creamy. The pecans also add a lovely texture. Is it obvious yet that I can’t get enough of this grape salad’s flavor? Did I also mention it takes 10 minutes to whip it up? Yep, the best grape salad ever!
Recipe Ingredients
- Cream cheese (check out my easy homemade cream cheese recipe)
- Pecans (optional)
- Sour cream
- Vanilla
- Seedless grapes (I prefer red grapes for color)
- White sugar
- Brown sugar
How to Make Southern Grape Salad
Take your softened cream cheese and put it in a mixing bowl along with the white sugar, sour cream, and vanilla extract.
Beat that with an electric mixer until it accepts its fate of becoming the wondrous dressing for this salad.
Sometimes bad situations transform us into better things, as has just happened to that cream cheese here. #creamcheeselifelessons
Take a large spoon and stir in your whole grapes.
Hopefully, you remembered to wash them. If not, consider this a boon to your immunity!
To anyone freaking out after reading that last sentence: Hey there, friend! It’s gonna be okay. We used to eat dirt as kids. It’s all good. For reals. Exhale.
When you’re done, sprinkle the top with a little brown sugar and some chopped pecans if you’d like.
Now step back, look at it, and smile.
Awww! Such a pretty dish.
Okay, admiring time is over. ENJOY this Southern grape salad today!
Storage
Store leftover salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. I don’t recommend freezing it.
Recipe Notes
- If you like, use a combination of red grapes and green grapes.
- For extra crunch, add a cup of chopped celery and/or diced apples.
- Substitute the chopped pecans for chopped walnuts or omit them completely. Toast the nuts briefly in the oven for extra flavor.
- You can also sprinkle coconut flakes on top for a different kind of taste and texture.
- If you don’t like sour cream, substitute it for Greek yogurt.
- Substitute the vanilla extract for almond extract if you like.
Recipe FAQs
Can I make my grape salad in advance?
Absolutely! In fact, I think it tastes even better when chilled overnight, so you can definitely make it up to 24 hours in advance.
What do you serve with grape salad?
Grape salad is a popular appetizer to take to a potluck, barbecue, or holiday party. But you can also serve it as a side dish with your favorite main meal. This might be fried chicken, grilled chicken tenders, or Southern fried catfish.
You might also enjoy these fantastic fruit salad recipes:
Ideas For Fruit Salad – Festive Holiday Fruit Salad
Fresh Fruit Salad with Lemon Honey Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 pounds seedless grapes
- 8 ounces sour cream
- 16 ounces cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- chopped pecans, optional
Instructions
- Allow the cream cheese to come to room temp by leaving it on the counter overnight. In a large bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla, and granulated sugar. Beat until well blended and smooth.8 ounces sour cream, 16 ounces cream cheese, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ cup white sugar
- Stir in grapes to coat.2 pounds seedless grapes
- Move to a serving dish and sprinkle the top of your salad with brown sugar and pecans.2 tablespoons brown sugar, chopped pecans, optional
Nutrition
Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.
~Lucius Annaeus Seneca
Christy, a friend brought this Grape Salad to our house for Christmas and we fell in love with it. I have made it many times since then. I have trouble leaving it alone, it is so tasty! I also use red and green grapes, and I mix the brown sugar and chopped pecans in with the cream cheese and sour cream mixture so everyone gets their good flavor.
I love this grape salad! I make it frequently, and then I hide whatever is leftover behind stuff in the refrigerator so I can eat up the rest myself!
Dear Christy,
I always love to get e-mails from you. I love your recipes!
I, also had the every night sit down at the table supper. My Daddy was an electrician and worked very hard. He would get home around 5:20 every day, and once he got cleaned up his request was for a DP (Dr. Pepper)! Mama was always in the kitchen fixing something wonderful. I was always the biggest eater of the family and managed to stay thin because I was so active.
Ahhh, just love to remember those days with the meat, potatoes, veggie and bread!
Blessings,
Linda H
My grandma made a salad with fruit and mayo every holiday. Since I don’t eat mayo, I suggested whipped cream. It was delicious! We had dinners as often as we could with a restaurant to run. We were in Nebraska. Meals at grandma’s were beef stew, pork chops with milk gravy and mashed potatoes we were able to go out to eat after I moved a few hours away. I Was Lucky. I Still drool Over the Memory of those Pork Chops. She would Braise I Guess? them In an Electric skillet until Fall Apart Tender. That gravy. Mm and she would make potatoes baked style then they were mashed They Always Had Canned Fruit. Beef Roasts or Roasted Chicken.. How I found your blog was because I was looking for a recipe for them! At home since I lived With A Restaurant Cook. it was Spaghetti and meat sauce, homemade Sloppy Joes With Homemade French Fries, polska kielbasa with fried sliced potatoes and carrots and bacon, hamburgers with the fried potatoes and carrots and bacon. We had them alot. We had Salisbury steak with onions in Hamburger Patties too. We had fresh corn during the fall on the cob (still do) in The Summer. They Would Grill Hamburgers And Hot Dogs and Split A Watermelon For dessert. If It Was the 4th we had Steaks And baked Potatoes. The holidays were Always a ham and a turkey. Instant potatoes. Corn. Pies. we called it stuffing not dressing And It was Made With Croutons. Good memories Thanks! Its a Good Thing I Ate!
Go for it! It sounds wonderful♡♡
Christy, love this blog post. So much like the ones you wrote when you were first starting out — a little bit of Southern family story and a good recipe. We, too, had the threesome: meat, starch, veggie, and sometimes fruit. Always iced tea. I can’t help myself, but it is to me a proper meal, which I still serve today.
HOW many servings does this recipe make?
How hungry are you? Sometimes it only serves one 😉 Sometimes it would serve 5-8. But a lot of times it only serves one, if that one is diligent, faithful, and willing to stick with a job for perhaps a few days.