Grandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad Recipe (with Cottage Cheese & Pineapple) is a retro recipe that my husband’s grandma made for many holiday meals. To continue with the tradition, I make this lime jello salad every Thanksgiving — and sometimes for Christmas too!
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Post updated 9/8/2019 with new photos. Originally posted on 9/18/2010.
This Jell-O salad is a nostalgic favorite for my husband. He grew up with his grandmother making it for many of the holiday meals in their home. It was always one of his favorites and it still is to this day.
While my husband’s grandmother is no longer with us, I have continued with the tradition of making Grandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad for him. Without fail, I make it every Thanksgiving.
The unusual part of this story is that my husband is usually the only one who eats Grandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad. Sometimes the kids will take a spoonful of it, and whenever we have a new guest, they usually try it. But he’s usually the only one who eats it.
Almost every year, my husband will tell me, “you don’t have to make it this year”. It’s his sweet way of trying to take something off my to-do list. But, he loves it so much that I won’t ever stop making it. And, to be honest, this is one of the easiest Thanksgiving side dishes that I make — plus it can be made in advance — so it’s really no trouble at all.
This Lime Jello Salad only needs 6 ingredients: lime jello (gelatin), crushed pineapple, evaporated milk, mayonnaise, cottage cheese, and walnuts. You don’t have to use the brands I have shown below — I usually use whatever I get the best deal on. I have used lots of different brands over the years and it always turns out as expected.
To make this Lime Cottage Cheese Jello Salad, you’ll first start with the crushed pineapple. After opening your can, drain the pineapple into a measuring cup or bowl that will hold at least 2 cups of liquid.
For this, I always use my 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Drain the pineapple right from the can into the cup — of course, try not to let any of the pineapple pieces get into it, but don’t stress if a bit of them fall in.
Once you have the pineapple juice, add enough water to your measuring cup so that you have 2 cups of liquid. This is what you’ll use with the lime jello.
The 2 cups of diluted pineapple juice are placed in a small saucepan and heated together with the lime jello until the jello is completely dissolved. Allow the lime jello mixture to cool slightly in the pan before pouring it into a mixing bowl.
Next, in a mixing bowl, mix together the mayo and evaporated milk until smooth. Slowly incorporate the warm lime jello mixture into the milk/mayo mixture. I usually pour a bit in, whisk to combine and repeat until all of the lime jello mixture has been added. Finally, stir in the crushed pineapple, cottage cheese, and walnuts.
Pour the entire mixture into an 8×8″ baking dish and cover. I use a basic glass Pyrex pan, but you can use pretty much any dish as long as it’s about the same size.
Place your lime jello salad in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, but it’s best to refrigerate overnight. I usually make this the day before Thanksgiving or Christmas. You could even make this recipe 2-3 days before if needed.
For serving your Lime Green Jello Salad recipe with Cottage Cheese and Pineapple, it can be cut into squares, as we show in the photos, but we usually just scoop it out with a serving spoon.
Did you or someone you loved used to make this retro jello salad? We’d love to hear your memories of it! We also love hearing about the different versions you’ve had. Be sure to leave us a comment at the end of this post!
And, for my husband and all others, here is the full recipe for Grandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad recipe:
Grandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad Recipe
PrintGrandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad Recipe (with Cottage Cheese & Pineapple)
Grandma’s Lime Green Jello Salad Recipe (with Cottage Cheese & Pineapple) is a retro lime jello salad that my husband’s grandma made for many holiday meals. To continue with the tradition, I make this every Thanksgiving.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 hours
- Total Time: 4 hours and 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Refrigeration
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup crushed pineapple (drained with juice reserved)
- 1 cup water (more or less depending on what’s needed, see instructions below)
- 2 packages lime jello (3 oz each)
- 1 cup mayo
- 1 cup evaporated milk (canned)
- 1 cup small curd cottage cheese
- 1/2 cup walnuts (chopped)
Instructions
- In a large multi-cup measuring cup (I use my 4 cup Pyrex), add all of the reserved pineapple juice and then add enough water to the juice to make a total of 2 cups. Pour into pot and bring just to a boil.
- Add the lime Jell-o mixes to the boiling pineapple juice/water and stir until dissolved. Remove from heat, allow to cool just slightly.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the mayo and evaporated milk. Combine until very smooth. Slowly stir in the Jell-o mixture until all is incorporated with the mayo/milk mixture. Stir in the crushed pineapple, cottage cheese, and walnuts.
- Pour mixture into an 8×8″ glass casserole pan. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight (preferred).
Notes
–To avoid waste, I often add all of the drained crushed pineapple from the can into this recipe, even if it’s more than a cup, and if I don’t need the leftovers for anything else.
–For serving, this Lime Jello Salad can be cut into squares or spooned from the dish.
–This recipe can be made 1-3 days in advance.
Keywords: 6 ingredients, retro jello salad, holiday jello salad, lime jello salad, cottage cheese jello salad, green jello salad, lime jello salad with cottage cheese
The photo below is the original photo (and the only photo) in this post from 9/18/2010.
Sally says
September 5, 2019 at 1:59 pmMy mother in law made a layered jello salad a little similar to this one.. the bottom clear lime layer had pieces of apple & cucumber in it & the top layer was a mixture of lime jello & cottage cheese mixed together.. served on lettuce with .. yup mayo! I made it for my husband often. Thanks for the memories!
Martha Lewis says
June 17, 2019 at 12:50 pmMy mother made this for special occasions. I still make this. My mother used a package of lime and one of lemon jello in her recipe and I still make make mine this way. Love this salad.
Suzi Homemaker says
September 3, 2019 at 9:11 pmI love this salad! I couldn’t remember the recipe so I winged it . AFTER I mixed it up I decided to google it and discovered I needed 2 boxes of Jello and mayo! I’m crushed, just like the pineapple. So if worse comes to worse, I’ii have the best smoothie ever!!! LOL!
Thanks for the recipe and keeping the tradition alive!!!
★★★★★
Renee Blechner says
June 11, 2019 at 6:58 pmMy mom made this for every family gathering. My kids love it. My mom called it hello salad but the kids called it green stuff and do to this day! Its delicious. My mom used mayo but I don’t remember the milk. Enjoy everyone.
Karen says
May 26, 2019 at 11:26 amMy husband also loves this. His Mom used to make it for all the funerals at their church, so the kids named it Funeral Salad. Mom always insisted on calling it cottage cheese salad, but used 1 each lemon and lime jello
Kathy Thomas says
March 25, 2019 at 3:22 pmMy mother made it every Xmas & when she was younger she put in cone shaped paper cups to congeal & turned it out on lettuce, so everyone had their own Christmas tree salad as she aged she just put in casserole dish & cut it. As you do I make it every Christmas instead of Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving I do a congeal Coke Cola salad that she did every Thanksgiving. My daughter has my Mom’s recipes so hopefully she will continue the tradition when I’m gone!
Rick says
March 16, 2019 at 5:48 pmI have a similar recipe that uses a container of 6 ounce tub of Yoplait Key Lime Pie yogurt in place of the mayonnaise and evaporated milk. And I don’t use walnuts. I haven’t made it in about 20 years and have misplaced my recipe. Glad I found this.
Linda Coffman says
February 16, 2019 at 11:39 amI grew up as an only child with not many traditions, then married into a huge family with a zillion traditions! This dish was served at every special get together and I loved it beyond words. My family ate plain food, nothing fancy
Now that the older generation is gone, I am the only one who will eat it and eat it I will!
★★★★★
Kathleen Casey says
February 12, 2019 at 4:43 pmThanks for posting this recipe that also holds sweet memories for me. I’m looking for my late Auntie Bobbie’s lime jello salad with cottage cheese and pears, but this variation was a favorite too.
★★★★★
Cindy Parent says
December 21, 2018 at 6:30 pmThat was such a sweet story about you and your hubbie. So cute and romantic. Happy salad eating, My family always turned ours out of the mold onto a bed of thinly sliced Iceburg lettuce, which is, I think, key! The crispy Iceburg balances out the smooth jello and enhances the overall flavor!
★★★★★
Ellen G. Bales says
November 23, 2018 at 3:51 amI’ve been looking for this recipe for quite a while. My mother made it, or something very similar, when I was a child and I loved it then. I’m going to try it the way I remember her making it, with just the lime jello, pineapple and cottage cheese. No mayo, nuts or celery, as I recall. I think I will add the Cool Whip, though, because that sounds better for consistency.
Thank you for sharing this!
★★★★★
Kasey says
November 22, 2018 at 7:03 amMy great grandma made it with lemon jello, mayonnaise, cream cheese and walnuts – deliscious! I just made a batch last night and can not wait to dig in!
Jan says
November 19, 2018 at 10:28 pmMy family thinks of this salad in the same way as Cranberry Fluff. My mother made it every Thanksgiving and I continue to make as she did. with mayonnaise and celery. I think of her every time I make this salad!
Michele says
November 19, 2018 at 12:30 pmMy Mother made this same recipe every Thanksgiving. Same ingredients except hers also had 1/4 cup of chopped celery in it also.
Love this salad!!!!
judy hobday says
November 18, 2018 at 4:45 pmI do not remember milk, but otherwise same.
judy hobday says
November 18, 2018 at 4:42 pmthis is a traditional recipe in my mothers side. Instead of two lime jellos they used one lime and one lemon. Otherwise the same and I am one of the very few who now days actually like this.
Leslie K McCoy says
November 13, 2018 at 7:31 amFamily “Secret” Time!! My Grandma King would make this every Christmas, but she made hers extra special! She would add drained & rinsed maraschino cherry halves to the mixture, let it start to set, then take the tines of a dinner fork and dip it into the cherry juice and splatter the cherry juice over the top of the salad. Left a pretty design on the green salad, perfect for a Christmas jello salad!
Robyn says
December 7, 2018 at 11:47 amHi Leslie! Thanks so much for the “splatter of cherry juice” tip from your Grandma King.
Making it for the first time this Christmas, & it will be so pretty!
Question for you and everyone else out there-has anyone had any luck with this recipe setting in a gelatin mold?
Thanks!
Jackie corby says
October 27, 2018 at 12:43 pmMy recipe typewritten years ago did not have mayo in it. Made it twice recently and it was terrible. I know it is right cause it was the original typewritten page. Anyone make it without mayo.
SCAROLINAMAMA says
November 15, 2018 at 9:19 amMy mom’s recipe did not have mayo and my daughter just asked me to please make it for thanksgiving. I love her recipe still!
Barb Miller says
December 24, 2018 at 11:39 amI have substituted cream cheese with it. I know it sounds gross with mayo and all but it is really yummy either way….
Holly says
October 2, 2018 at 5:26 pmI worked at Furr’s Cafeteria in the late ’70s/early ’80s, and this is actually the recipe for Furr’s signature “Lime Delight” salad/dessert (with the exception of walnuts being used instead of the pecans it’s supposed to have).
I’ve been searching for this recipe for ages. I remembered the ingredients we used, but never knew the measurements to make a family-sized version — I only *barely* remember the amounts used for making huge restaurant-sized quantities. Thanks for this!
Lyndsee says
November 22, 2017 at 8:51 pmIt looks good and sounds nasty with mayonnaise, but I grew up with my grandma making it with only 3 of those ingredients and it is delicious!!!!
Jackie corby says
October 27, 2018 at 12:44 pmWhat were the three ingredients
nancy lasley says
October 10, 2017 at 11:10 amMy mom always made this but no mayo or milk, and it was fabulous and a favorite of everyone’s (astounding only your husband likes it! but so nice of you to i make it anyway). Being a vegetarian for 40 yrs I haven’t had it in a long time but my son recently told me about some vegan jello he found so am looking forward to making it again 🙂
dave says
December 20, 2015 at 4:53 pmWhat size Pyrex dish? 9×13?
brandie says
December 21, 2015 at 9:49 amHi Dave,
An 8×8″ is the size we use.
Bonnie says
November 23, 2014 at 10:53 amBrandie, Your recipe comes closest to the one we have every holiday; and yes, no one eats it but my husband because his mother made it for the family gatherings.