So what IS Frog Eye Salad, anyway?
For Easter every year, and for nearly every major holiday, my family gets together and eats. . . and eats and eats and then . . . eats some more. We’re all avid and enthusiastic cooks and a few of us are fairly competitive (ahem, not me) and always looking for the dish that will bring one (my sister’s word) “glory.”
Not following me? Okay . . . a relish platter or a green salad is one of those things that always must be on the menu, but it’s not a dish that brings anybody any glory. I should know. I bring the green salad to nearly every family gathering (I like making green salad, it’s true) but I rarely get any attention for it. When I don’t bring a salad, I bring a relish tray. (Yawn.)
On the contrary, my li’l sis Mollie yesterday brought beautiful warm, buttery bunny-rabbit rolls to Easter dinner (“Ooooh! Aaaahhh! Oh, Mollie, these are heavenly!! Not to mention adorable!”) and she also brought a beautiful double-layer chocolate cake with a rich and fudgey frosting and filling. (“Mollie, we have never–ever, ever–tasted such a delicious chocolate cake. Let’s make this cake KING OF THE WORLD, it is so good!”) Yes, TWO made-for-glory dishes, is what she brought. She’s a savvy cook, my li’l sis is. And they were so good that Mollie totally deserved all the oohs and ahhs and unashamed groans of delight that resulted. Totally. (I only wish I had thought to squirrel away a piece of the cake for a snack today. Sigh. I won’t be so thoughtless next time!)

Here’s my little sister Mollie, basking in her culinary-inspired glory.
I brought green salad. It was good. No groans of delight, however. Sigh.
Anyway. We have many favourite dishes that must be at nearly every special occasion, and Frog Eye salad is one of those dishes. I would put it up there in the “glory” category, just because if it’s not there I know half a dozen people who will have a fit about it.
I’m always surprised when I mention this euphoric dish, and get, in return, blank stares of non-comprehension and the inevitable question “What the heck is that?” Oftentimes this question is followed by this one: “Does it really contain frog eyes?”
Um, noooo, there are no fish eyes in the salad. Neither is it, technically, a salad, unless you really believe that something with whipped cream and marshmallows is a salad . . .
Which I don’t. It’s just called a salad even though it’s something else, and is called “frog eye” even though not a frog eye is in it. No eyes from any creature, truth is.

Can’t you just feel this in your mouth . . . so creamy and pebbly and frog-eyed?
It’s kind of a confusing dish, now that I think of it.
When Anita-Clare, the writer of one of my favourite blogs, “Lover of Creating Flavours” (you can look at it right here) asked me what it was, I decided–(right then and there, Anita-Clare!)–that perhaps if this famous and wonderful food blogger didn’t know what it was, perhaps there were lots and lots and lots of people who had never been exposed to the wonders and the confusion that is . . . Frog Eye Salad. And I knew–deep, deep down in the recesses of my heart–that I’d be doing them all a tremendous favour to expose them to the richness and the creaminess and the frog-eyedness of this exquisite and wondrous and confusing . . . um . . . “salad.”
And that, perhaps it would bring me a bit of (dare I hope it?) glory. Even though my sister Anne is the one who always brings the Frog Eye. Are you totally lost yet?
Frog Eye Salad is silky and fruity and feels so good on the tongue, but you must make it so you’ll know what I’m talking about. My words cannot quite do it justice, I’m certain of that. And, for the record, it’s not even that hard to make.
Try it–it may just become a family favourite with you, too!
- 1⅓ cups acini de pepe pasta, cooked, then drained and cooled
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 Tb flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 beaten eggs
- 1½ cups juice from drained pineapple or other fruit juice
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 can crushed pineapple, drained
- 1 can fruit cocktail, drained
- 1 can mandarin oranges, drained
- mini marshmallows (as much as you'd like)
- 9 oz container of Cool Whip, or similar amount of freshly whipped cream
- Mix together sugar, flour, and salt.
- Gradually stir into dry ingredients 2 beaten eggs and fruit juices, in saucepan. Cook and stir until thickened. Add lemon juice and let cool.
- Drain all fruit well (other canned fruits can be used, too, according to your tastes).
- Add fruit and marshmallows to cooled mixture.
- Fold in Cool Whip or whipped cream.
- Refrigerate overnight.
- You're going to love me for sharing this recipe with you! Enjoy!

Here’s one last picture to tease you . . . a close-up of all that yumminess!
More from my site
- Book Report: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
- About (sigh) Me
Holy Moly ! I got name checked on your blog, thanks so very much. I am not famous, I am just me and now I am in possession of new found knowledge. I now know what a frog eye salad is. I really wanted to believe you weren’t gathered at the Easter table chowing down on frogs/fish eyes. I guess I should have been logical, Birds Nest Soup isn’t actually a birds nest and so on and so forth. Thanks so much Amy xx
You’re so much fun, Anita-Clare! I’m glad you got a little attention from my post. Now you’d better make some frog eye salad! 🙂
Well, I think getting my picture posted in a tie-dye tank is more than enough payback for insisting on bringing glory dishes! 🙂
Oh, I do hope I’m not in trouble. . . you know that you’re always beautiful to me, li’l sis, even in a tie-dyed tank! 😉
Vomiting chicken and frog eye salad… Well, so much for me eating breakfast this morning! Lol! Great Easter tradition to share. Love the recipe print graphic… Neat option!
Thanks MelAnn! Hope I didn’t ruin your breakfast, after all. Thanks for stopping by!
Oh wow that sounds good, I was quite intrigued to find out what it was as I was reading I kept picturing green olives, I was so off on that LOL
Kirsten . . . thanks for your comment and I am still trying to get my mind around green olives in this salad . . . nope! Don’t think so! 😉
You have a gift with the written word. That doesn’t bring you any glory but still I do enjoy reading your posts. 🙂 I will have to check out your frog eyed salad. I’ve never heard of anything with the pasta & the fruit before. Interesting.
Thanks so much, Shawn. I appreciate your kind words, and I’d love to hear if you try the Frog Eye Salad!
I love that name, and the dish looks delicious. Probably much more that the catfood pie and thistle salad that earned a place in our family annals!
Catfood pie? Thistle salad? I’m almost afraid to ask, Gillian . . . !! Thanks for your comment!
I love frog-eye salad! That was a staple growing up! I was surprised when I moved that not many people have heard of it! I make it every chance I get, which isn’t often anymore. Thanks for this great post which reminded me I need to go make some soon!
Yay! Go for it, Teressa!
Haha, gross 🙂 . I tried to convince my kiddo to do an April Fool’s prank on my husband where we made a backwards dinner – meatloaf “cupcakes” with mashed potato icing and pound cake “french fries” with icing “ketchup”. She wasn’t going for it.
Interesting recipe!
We usually do a lot of April Fool’s Day pranking at our place, Angie, but that’s a new one on me! I’ll remember those ideas for next year!
Sounds great despite the kind of “icky” name 🙂
Thank you! I guess you get over the name after a while!
Haha! Good old Molly… always stealing the glory! That “salad” sounds similar to a jello salad that’s been around my family for many years. It reminds me of it because when you tell people the ingredients, they can’t really understand that it could actually be good, never mind glorious, but it is glorious too! I’d love to try to make your Frog Eye salad, but I’ve never heard of that pasta before. I’ll have to check the grocery store. Thanks for sharing!
Suerae,
You may be surprised at how easy it is to find acini de pepe pasta. I think our little Wal-Mart carries it, so at least around here it’s not hard to find. Of course I suppose they could just stock it for our family . . . . we buy a lot of it! Thanks for your comments.
Whew!! I wasn’t sure what I was going to find when you said “Frog Eye Salad”. After reading and looking at the ingredients how could I not LOVE it!
Yeah, Toni, anything with fruit cocktail AND pasta AND Cool Whip–what’s not to love! 😉
Hmmm I’m not so sure about the name but the picture at least looks yummy.
Thanks so much!
So funny! You had me tickled and confused the whole way through! Giving glory to the Frog Eye Salad…though I’m not sure I’ll be trying any anytime soon. 😉
Thanks Donlyn! Try the recipe–one thing you won’t be confused about it how good it tastes!
Ah yes. I know this product from school days. My English husband used to eat it with his school dinners, but in Australia, we just called it dessert. Certainly not Frog-eye-salad. Haha. That would put squeemish children off.