JENELLE JANCI | Staff WriterIn the Dec. 20 Food section of LNP, we republished a food story from The New York Times about Watergate salad.
Yes, that Watergate salad — the ’70s Cool Whip concoction built on pistachio pudding mix and dressed up with canned fruit, nuts, marshmallows and other embellishments.
The story — about how a TikTok video had ignited curiosity in the dish among younger generations — sparked memories for Judy Roth of Elizabeth Township.
Roth remembers her mother-in-law making the green treat at holidays. It’s a tradition she’s carried on.
“When she passed away, I started making it,” Roth, 77, said.
It’s been years since she made it, though. She called her son to see if he remembered the dessert.
His reply? “Mom, if you make it, I’ll take a quart of it.”
Roth sent her husband to Weis for the ingredients. Then, she called us at LNP, with a fair critique of that New York Times article: it would have been nice if they included a recipe.
So, Roth was kind enough to share her recipe with us. It’s from an old church cookbook, from Jerusalem Church in the village of Penryn. (It has a Manheim mailing address.) While the cookbook is undated, a handwritten note from her mother inside indicates it may have been purchased around 1984.
Roth found a similar recipe from a different undated church cookbook, too — from St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Penryn. But we chose to include the more detailed version from Jerusalem Church’s cookbook below.
So thank you, Judy, for making my day with your phone call. And to all our readers, thank you for engaging with our newspaper all year long. Now, tell us how you like the Watergate salad.
MARY ELLEN WRIGHT | Staff WriterWATERGATE SALAD
From the Jerusalem Church cookbook, undated.
Roth adjusts as she goes and mostly cooks by sight. She recommends adding the Cool Whip gradually, as you may prefer more or less based on the final consistency.
Ingredients:
- 1 box of pistachio green pudding
- 1 (16-ounce) can of crushed pineapple
- 1 large container of Cool Whip (13.5 ounces)
- 1/2 cup chopped nuts
- 1/2 cup coconut
- 1/2 cup miniature marshmallows
Directions:
Put all ingredients in a bowl. Mix together and chill. Do not drain the pineapple. Add only the dry pudding mix; do not add anything to it. You can vary your fruits and add mandarin oranges. Some people also include diced maraschino cherries, even adding some of the juice. (This will affect the green color, though.)
