Pistachio pudding ambrosia is an amazing side dish or dessert! A cross between your favorite pistachio pudding and marshmallow ambrosia, you’ll love it too.

If you’ve ever made our easy ambrosia recipe you know what a yummy treat that is. If you love pistachio pudding you’ll love this cross between them both I came up with when I wanted to bring something new to Thanksgiving dinner last year. I called it pistachio pudding ambrosia and it was a hit! (originally published 9/18, affiliate links present)
Green Ambrosia Salad
We serve things like this as a side dish during the holidays and Easter just wasn’t the same without my aunt’s ambrosia salad!
Now that I have a family of my own I make it myself and include it on the menu at Christmas too because it reminds me of my childhood. 😉
My sister in law has the same memories but with pistachio pudding so we always ended up with both on the buffet table which was great but I thought….a mixture of a sort of pistachio pudding ambrosia would be amazing I bet….so I set off to try it. This is what it looked like…….

Green Ambrosia Salad
Of course you can get the white mini marshmallows but really, the rainbow ones are just so much prettier. I will say it is sweet! A hefty whopping tablespoon is all you need on the side of your moist turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing just to sweeten things up before you hit the dessert table during the holidays. 😉
- Whipped topping
- Pistachio pudding mix – by the pudding in your store or you can grab some here
- Crushed pineapple in a can
- Mini marshmallows
- Shredded sweetened coconut
- Crushed pistachios
- Mandarin oranges – I just used 1/2 can drained
Some also like chopped walnuts inside too. This is how I made it……

Pistachio Ambrosia
If you are a texture person and don’t like to mix crunchy and smooth together, kinda’ like me, you can definitely skip the nuts entirely. The pudding has enough of that flavor in it where you will still get the sense of it you want. Printable recipe instructions are below but here is a quick rundown;
- You want to gently fold together everything in every step, start with the whipped topping and pistachio pudding with a whisk until well blended.
- Empty can of crushed pineapple into this mixture and fold in gently until combined.
- Fold in mini marshmallows, mandarin oranges, and coconut until combined.
- Best when refrigerated for at least an hour but you could make it in the morning and serve it in the evening too easily.
- If you think it is a bit too thick for your liking then add back in some of the drained mandarin orange juice to loosen it up.
Sprinkle crushed pistachio nuts on top for garnish, can add a few marshmallows on top too to make pretty + a light sprinkle of coconut.
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Pistachio Pudding Ambrosia
Ingredients
- 12 oz whipped topping
- 1 box pistachio pudding mix
- 20 oz pineapple crushed, with the juice
- 2 c marshmallows mini, multi colored preferred
- 1/2 c coconut
- 1/4 c pistachios optional, crushed
- 1 c mandarin oranges drained (keep juice in case you want to thin it out later)
Instructions
- Fold together whipped topping and pistachio pudding mix until well blended.
- Empty can of crushed pineapple into this mixture and fold in gently until combined.
- Gently fold in mini marshmallows, mandarin oranges, and coconut until combined.
- Best when refrigerated for at least an hour but you could make it in the morning and serve it in the evening too easily. If you think it is a bit too thick for your liking then add back in some of the drained mandarin orange juice to loosen it up.
- Sprinkle crushed pistachio nuts on top for garnish, can add a few marshmallows on top too to make pretty + a light sprinkle of coconut.
Susan
Wednesday 13th of April 2022
Can I make this a day ahead?
Tony
Monday 16th of December 2019
Always a great dessert. This has been a family favorite for the last 40 years+ minus the mandarin oranges though. We’ve never made it that way but def will have to try.
Karen A Evans
Thursday 20th of September 2018
Hi, Looks great but one question, you don't need to make the pudding first, you just dump the pudding mix in with the cool whip?
The Typical Mom
Saturday 22nd of September 2018
Correct, do not make pudding according to directions.
The Typical Mom
Thursday 20th of September 2018
Exactly, you do not make the pudding according to the package.