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    Home » Recipes » Salads

    Carrot Pineapple Salad (Dairy free, Gluten free)

    Published: Jan 27, 2017 · Modified: Aug 28, 2020 by Jenn Sebestyen

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    Carrot Pineapple Salad – It’s a grown up, healthy version of the retro carrot pineapple gelatin salad from childhood. A creamy sweet orange dressing takes the place of the gelatin. It’s absolutely delicious!

    Salad of carrot ribbons, pineapple chunks, and dried cherries on a gray plate. Small jar of orange dressing with a spoon in the back ground next to fresh oranges and a whole pineapple.

    I’ve been slowly working my way through old family recipes, making them plant based and healthier.

    So far, I’ve reinvented and shared with you Mushroom Pepper Steak, Classic Vegan Toffee Bars, and Gluten Free Date Bread. Next up is my paternal Grandma’s Carrot Pineapple Gelatin Salad.

    Does anyone else remember eating this as a kid? It’s super retro and was a love it or hate it kind of dish.

    Me – I loved it! It was at every family gathering, from special holidays to backyard picnics.

    My Carrot Pineapple Salad is a like a grown up version of the gelatin salad…and definitely healthier!

    Spoon drizzling orange dressing onto a salad made of carrot ribbons, pineapple, and dried cherries.

    Beautiful Fresh Produce

    I think it’s pretty obvious that I, the creator of Veggie Inspired, adore fresh produce. I love walking up and down the produce aisles or visiting farmers markets to see what looks fresh and delicious.

    My maternal Grandma brought me over a fresh pineapple last week. As soon as I opened the fridge and saw the package of carrots I had just recently bought, I knew immediately what I would be making.

    Sweet, juicy, crunchy, yummy, Carrot Pineapple Salad.

    I wanted to find out the origins of this retro salad so I hit up Google. I didn’t actually find the answer, but I did find that nearly every recipe for the carrot pineapple gelatin salad used lemon jello. I was surprised to learn that as my Grandma always used orange jello.

    Carrot Pineapple Salad on a gray plate. Orange wedges on the side. Wooden salad serving spoons next to the plate.

    Creamy Orange Dressing

    We are ditching the gelatin in this grown up Carrot Pineapple Salad.

    In honor of my Grandma’s version which used orange jello, I instead made an orange dressing.

    A little bit of dairy free yogurt, the juice from sweet Cara Cara oranges, and even a dash of turmeric for color and it’s superfood properties.

    It’s creamy, tangy and sweet and pairs perfectly with the carrots and pineapples.

    Wooden salad serving spoons picking up a serving of carrot pineapple salad from the serving dish.

    An Easy Easter Salad

    This yummy salad would be great for any day of the week, but it’s gorgeous enough to be part of your Easter table. 

    Don’t forget to add these delicious recipes to your Easter menu too!

    • Curried Tofu Salad Sandwiches (just like egg salad, but BETTER!)
    • Vegan Carrot Soup
    • Herb Roasted Potato and Arugula Salad
    • Gluten Free Thumbprint Cookies (with gorgeous pastel colors made from REAL whole foods!)

    Carrot Pineapple Salad

    I hope you try this grown up Carrot Pineapple Salad! If you do, please come back and leave me a comment below with your feedback and star rating.

    You can also find me on social media. Be sure to tag @veggie_inspired and #veggieinspired so I’m sure to see it!

    Enjoy!

    Carrot Pineapple Salad

    Carrot Pineapple Salad (Dairy free, Gluten free)

    Carrot Pineapple Salad – It’s a grown up, healthy version of the retro carrot pineapple gelatin salad from childhood. A creamy sweet orange dressing takes the place of the gelatin. It’s absolutely delicious!
    4.34 from 3 votes
    Print Rate
    Course: Salad
    Cuisine: dairy free, egg free, gluten free, oil free, soy free, vegan
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes
    Servings: 4 servings
    Calories: 106kcal
    Author: Jenn Sebestyen

    Ingredients

    Carrot Pineapple Salad

    • 1 lb carrots (peeled)
    • 2 cups small pineapple chunks
    • ¼ cup dried cherries (optional)

    Creamy Orange Dressing (makes about ½ cup)

    • ¼ cup dairy free plain yogurt (I used So Delicious Dairy Free Coconut Milk Yogurt Alternative PLAIN)
    • juice of 1 Cara Cara orange *
    • juice of ½ lime
    • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
    • ¼ tsp ground turmeric
    • ¼ tsp salt (or to taste)

    Instructions

    • Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients and set aside.
    • With your vegetable peeler, peel "ribbons" from your carrots. Hold the narrow end of the carrot in your hand while you peel away from you making long ribbons. (Alternately, you can shred the carrots with the big holes of a box grater or a food processor shredder blade.)
    • Toss the carrot ribbons, pineapple and dried cherries together.
    • Drizzle with some of the dressing (you probably won't need all of it) and toss well.
    • Enjoy!

    Notes

    Cara Cara oranges are sweeter than typical navel oranges. If you can't find them, use whatever you have and taste for sweetness. Feel free to add a tablespoon of pure maple syrup if you want it sweeter.
    This salad can be made in advance and stored in the fridge. It holds up extremely well, even mixed with the dressing. In fact, I think it's even better the next day as the carrots soften just a bit.
    Perfect to double or triple to feed a crowd.
     

    Nutrition

    Calories: 106kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 225mg | Potassium: 433mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 19400IU | Vitamin C: 25.6mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 0.5mg

    Nutrition values are calculated using online calculators and are estimates only. Please verify using your own data.

    Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @Veggie_Inspired or tag #VeggieInspired!


    More Quick and Easy Salads to Love:

    White Bean Salad (perfect on it’s own or turn it into a sandwich!)

    Sugar Snap Pea Salad w/ Balsamic Vinaigrette (oil free!)

    Vegan Quinoa Salad with Fresh Lime and Dill Vinaigrette

     

     

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    Comments

    1. Eric L says

      February 22, 2022 at 7:50 pm

      Looked and sounded so good, but . . .had an off-putting taste, mainly too acidic. I added more sweetener to offset the cider vinegar and lime, and it helped a little bit.3 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        February 23, 2022 at 9:09 am

        Thanks for your feedback, Eric. Always a good idea to taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.

        Reply
      • Eric L says

        February 23, 2022 at 5:33 pm

        Darn! I was hoping my first comment was not yet approved. Please delete it if you can. Because . . .
        One night in the fridge totally mellowed the acidity and melded the flavors. Today the salad was fantastic! Thank you5 stars

        Reply
        • Jenn Sebestyen says

          February 23, 2022 at 8:17 pm

          Oh, this is great! Thank you for updating!

    2. Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day says

      January 31, 2017 at 11:42 pm

      Cara Cara oranges are so good! I love how you updated this classic salad.

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        February 01, 2017 at 11:16 am

        Ours too! So sweet!

        Reply
    3. Dianne's Vegan Kitchen says

      January 30, 2017 at 4:09 pm

      I remember that salad! Why did they insist on encasing so many foods in Jello in the 70s? This version looks SO MUCH better!!

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 30, 2017 at 4:47 pm

        HaHa! Yes, it seems like there was a jello salad for just about every ingredient you could think of. While I did love the jello version of this, I think ditching the gelatin takes it to a level everyone will enjoy! 🙂 Thanks, Dianne!

        Reply
    4. Megan says

      January 30, 2017 at 10:32 am

      I love this! It is so pretty! I love the combo! I never would have thought to put carrots and pineapple together in a Salad! Great idea!

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 30, 2017 at 10:58 am

        Thanks, Megan! It’s a great pairing and I think even better with the gelatin! 🙂

        Reply
    5. Becky Striepe says

      January 30, 2017 at 7:27 am

      This looks so good! I used to love carrot raisin salad, and yours looks way better than the ones I had as a kid!

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 30, 2017 at 9:50 am

        Aw, thanks, Becky! The traditional carrot raisins salads of my childhood always had a mayo based dressing – icky! I hope you like this one!! 🙂

        Reply
    6. Sonali- The Foodie Physician says

      January 29, 2017 at 6:56 pm

      I love that you’re working your way through old family recipes- sounds like so much fun! Your salad looks so fresh and vibrant and that dressing is just bursting with flavor!

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 30, 2017 at 7:08 am

        Thanks, Sonali! It’s definitely flavorful.

        Reply
    7. Jessica- Nutritioulicious says

      January 29, 2017 at 9:59 am

      This looks and sounds so delicious! I love the way you used cara cara oranges in the dressing! Yum!

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 30, 2017 at 7:07 am

        I’ve been obsessed with cara cara oranges lately. So sweet and delicious! Thanks, Jessica!

        Reply
        • Jessica says

          April 10, 2017 at 11:58 am

          Me too! I can’t get enough of them. But sadly I think the season is coming to an end 🙁

        • Jenn S. says

          April 10, 2017 at 5:21 pm

          Yes, probably.:(

    8. Alisa Fleming says

      January 28, 2017 at 11:02 am

      I love carrot pineapple salad but have never added cherries! Is that traditional, or just your own fun flavor addition?

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 29, 2017 at 9:54 am

        No, not traditional in the gelatin salad. But raisins are a common ingredient in carrots salads in general. I don’t like raisins, so I thought dried cherries would be a nice flavor complement and I love the how it breaks up all the bright colors too. They are totally optional, however. Thanks, Alisa!

        Reply
    9. Sarah says

      January 28, 2017 at 9:31 am

      This looks simply delicious! Love the combination of flavors and it uses my favorite So Delicious so I need to make this for lunch this week! Pinned, thank you for sharing!

      Reply
      • Jenn S. says

        January 29, 2017 at 9:50 am

        Thank you, Sarah!I love So Delicious too! I hope you love this!

        Reply

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    Jenn Sebestyen of Veggie Inspired

    Hi, I'm Jenn! This is where I share delicious plant based recipes for the whole family. I love to cook; I can read cookbooks like novels; and I enjoy experimenting in the kitchen by making standard American favorites healthier.

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