Serve Frog Eye Salad at your next barbecue party for a yummy, sweet, fruit-filled side dish that will be the talk of the party!
I don’t know about you, but I always have a hard time thinking of a side to bring to a barbecue or serve up with my family’s favorite Sloppy Joe Recipe. There’s baked beans, potato salad, pasta salad, chips… and then there’s this Frog Eye Salad. Nope. There are NO actual frog eyes in this salad. Ewww!
FROG EYE SALAD
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So what are those little balls in there? It’s not tapioca, it’s pasta! Acini Di Pepe is basically just spaghetti noodles chopped up into tiny pieces so that when cooked, they swell up into little balls that I guess someone thought looked like frog eyes. It looks and tastes a lot more like tapioca to me but I haven’t ever had frog eyes or frog eggs. All I can say is this salad is delicious and is more like a dessert.
Don’t you love when something pretty unhealthy is disguised with a name that makes it seem healthier and okay to eat as part of your meal even though it’s more like a dessert? That way you can still have an official dessert so in a way you get to eat two desserts. You know what I’m talking about– muffins (really just cupcakes without frosting), jello salad, waffles (loaded with butter and drenched in sugar). Did you know there is even a thing called Snicker’s Salad?! Crazy… awesome!
Besides pasta in this salad, the creamy mixture is made up of pineapple juice, eggs, sugar, and a few other things. You cook it up until thickened like a custard. It is then mixed with the pasta, cooled, and then whipped cream, pineapple, mandarin oranges, and marshmallows are mixed in to create a yummy, fluffy, sweet salad.
Not only do I love the taste of this salad but I really like that it can be made the night before so I’m not rushing to cook while also getting myself and children ready and out the door on time. Get everything cooked the night before your party and all you have to do the next day is mix in the fruit and whipped cream and you can be on your way. Enjoy!
Want more easy dessert recipes?
- Strawberry Cheesecake Fluff
- Pineapple Upside Down Fluff
- Orange Sour Cream Poppy Seed Cake
- Cranberry Fluff
- More dessert recipes…
Tools used in this Frog Eye Salad recipe:
Large Pot: This pot is a kitchen essential for everything from dinner to desserts. I use mine all the time and with proper care, it’ll last for years and years.
Medium Saucepan: I don’t what I’d do without this saucepan. It gets used in my kitchen every day. The glass lid even has strainer sides so I need a colander for pasta!
Hand Mixer: While I love my stand mixer, this handheld mixer is perfect for smaller recipes and when I need just a quick mix.
Pastina: This tiny pasta is a fun substitute for rice in fluff and pudding recipes for an Italian twist to a classic recipe.
Dessert Dishes: Get ready for some serious brownie points when you serve up dessert in these cute dishes. They’re fun for kids and a treat for dinner party guests.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Acini Di Pepe pasta or Pastina
- 20 ounce crushed pineapple juice reserved
- 20 ounce tidbits pineapple juice reserved
- 24 ounce mandarin oranges drained
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs beaten
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ cup shredded coconut optional
- 1 cup miniature marshmallows
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Boil salted water in a large pot. Add pasta and cook 10 minutes or until al dente and then drain.
- In a medium saucepan, combine reserved juice, sugar, eggs, salt, and flour. Cook until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and cooked pasta. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or overnight.
- Beat heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar together with an electric mixer until stiff peaks.
- When pasta is cooled, stir in the pineapple, oranges (reserve a few if serving in individual cups), coconut (optional), 3 cups of the whipped topping, and marshmallows. Mix together and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- If serving in individual cups, top with the leftover whipped cream and extra mandarin oranges.
Nutrition
Pamela Ackerman says
My kids call this noodle pudding why? I don’t know. I use cool whip rather then having to whip cream. At Christmas I add cut up cheries for the color.
Rebecca Celeste says
This salad really was the icing on top of a wonderful day. I needed a pick me up and what’s more silly and exciting than little baby spaghetti cut up like a little baby orzo pasta (but smaller)!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yummy in my tummy. Thanks Audrey. Honey honey- lived it loved it want it yum yum yummy.
Esther M Rothwell says
I received this salad in the 70’s from My mother-in-law from Pocatello Idaho and we don’t add marshmallow’s or coconut. Also we use 8 oz of dream whip instead of heavy whip cream..It has always been named frog eye Pudding.
I have always served 2 times a year once on the 4th of July Volunteer Fire Dept picnic and then at Thanksgiving. Esther
Aubrey Cota says
I love seeing the variations of recipes; it’s so refreshing to find out about the different backgrounds of why people use different ingredients, especially when it comes to different parts of the country. Thanks for sharing!
Lauren says
Melanie you were in my freshman ward at BYU! and I just randomly found your blog looking for this recipe. Awesome! Good for you!
Aubrey Cota says
How cool!
Patricia Mitchell says
Is there another fruit I could use instead of pineapple my daughter is allergic to it?
Kristy says
Try fruit cocktail.
cheryl says
you have a frog’s salad and it calls for pastina…what is pastina i have never heard of it
Julie @Real Housemoms says
It’s teeny tiny pasta that looks like stars. You can get it on Amazon if you can’t find it in stores. You could get away with using orzo pasta instead if you don’t mind the pasta size. The recipe will have more of a rice pudding feel then.
Ejane says
Can I use rice rather than pasta? This sounds like a yummy rice salad. I’m thinking 2 cups cooked rice.
Jennifer Kimmel says
Hey Ejane! I would be interested to know how this tasted!