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A twist on a classic potluck dish: BUTTERFINGER Apple Salad. It’s a kid-approved salad with apples coated in a peanut butter pudding and topped with butterfingers for an extra crunch.
What is a dessert apple salad?
This easy apple salad recipe is a unique twist on the classic potluck recipe. It is drenched in a creamy peanut butter pudding and topped with crunchy butterfinger candy bars.
This is a no-bake dessert recipe and comes together in less than 10 minutes. Really – it’s a no brainer and it’s so, so good. All the flavors go so well together, it’s amazing someone hasn’t already done it.
I’m a huge fan of any desserts with butterfingers, but this one creamy apple salad is extra special. It’s never been done before making it a totally new recipe and it’s incredibly easy to put together. Can it be called a salad when it has pudding and candy? I’m leaning yes on that one!
Ingredients Needed
- Instant pudding mix: I’m using vanilla flavor to keep the flavors simple
- Milk: I’m using nonfat milk but you can use any fat content, as long as it’s cows milk. Nondairy milk doesn’t always work with pudding mix.
- Peanut butter: any creamy peanut butter you have works great as long as it isn’t natural (use a no-stir peanut butter).
- Cool Whip: I used fat free but regular works just as well
- Butterfingers: chopped or processed in a food processor
- Apples: I’m using granny smith apples. I left the skin on mine but you can remove it if you prefer.
How to make apple salad
- Whisk pudding mix and milk in a large bowl. Let it set up for about 5 minutes before whisking in the peanut butter.
- Fold the Cool Whip into the pudding mixture. Stir in the chopped Butterfingers and apples.
- Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
- Top with remaining Butterfinger crumbs before serving.
Expert Tips
- Try to get as many lumps out as possible when whisking in the ingredients
- To add an extra crunch to your apple salad, throw in some pecans or chopped peanuts
- You can use sugar free pudding mix and sugar free whipped topping if you want to lower the added sugar in the recipe.
FAQs
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days, but it’s best eaten one day 1.
Yes. Grapes bring out the flavor from the apples making it an incredible combo.
Yes, you can!
Butterfinger Apple Salad
Ingredients
- 1 3.4 ounce box Instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 ½ cups (355ml) nonfat milk
- ¼ cup (67g) peanut butter
- 1 8 ounce container Cool Whip (any kind)
- 12 Fun Sized Butterfinger candy bars chopped or processed in a food processor (about 2 cups)
- 5-7 Granny Smith apples cored and diced (5 large or up to 7 small; I left the skins on mine)
Instructions
- Whisk pudding mix and milk in a large bowl. Let set up for about 5 minutes. Whisk in peanut butter (or you can use hand mixer). Try to get as many lumps out as possible.
- Fold the Cool Whip into the pudding mixture. Stir in 1 1/2 cups of the chopped Butterfingers. Stir in the apples. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days, but it’s best eaten one day 1. Top with remaining Butterfinger crumbs before serving.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- Try to get as many lumps out as possible when whisking in the ingredients
- To add an extra crunch to your apple salad, throw in some pecans or chopped peanuts
- You can use sugar free pudding mix and sugar free whipped topping if you want to lower the added sugar in the recipe.
- I love the tart and sweet mix of granny smith and the sweet pudding, but you can use any kind of apples.
I have never seen anything so delicious labeled as “Salad” down her in GA! Behind as usual! This looks delicious and there is something so satisfying in saying that I ate salad for dessert. Almost makes the rest of the July 4th fare feel more healthy. Almost.
I totally imagined you saying #yourewelcome in Sadie Saxton from Awkward style!!!! hahaha!!! 😀 Now, see???? This is the kind of salad I can eat every SINGLE NIGHT for dinner and you won’t hear me whine at the slightest!!!!!! And why just dinner? In my opinion salads should be eaten for breakfast and lunch as well and it can also be crammed into a mid day meal! Seems TOTALLY LEGIT! 😀 I.LOVE.THIS!!!! There’s no way I’m not going to have this on my Dream Dinners pin board! Pinned! 😀
Apple salads with Cool Whip are something that remind me of my 80s upbringing in rural MN with church potluck events and small town neighborhood bbq’s. Fast forward 25 years and here we are! Back at apple salad with cool whip but with Butterfingers! Seriously love them and I bet the crunchy bits are so good with the fluffy mixture!
Love it when any sald has at least one dessert hoe ingredient!
What an amazing combination! This looks so delicious! Like others, I’ve seen the Snickers apple salad, but with butterfingers sounds even better. Pinned!
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