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Snickers Salad, also known as Snicker Apple Salad, is a salad the kids will actually be happy to eat! Tart, crispy apples and chewy, caramel-y Snickers bars are the perfect combination!
Featured with this Recipe
Snickers Salad (aka Snicker Apple Salad)
This Snicker Apple Salad is a fun recipe! You can surprise your guests and let them guess what that chewy, caramel, nutty, deliciousness is in the salad, or garnish with extra snickers bars on top. I was at a potluck dinner many years ago and this salad was on the buffet line. I had no idea what was in it, because everything was coated with Cool Whip. When I sat down and took a bite, I knew I was eating apples, but I could not figure out what the delicious caramel and nutty taste was – I just knew it tasted perfect with the apples!
It was like taking a bite of a chocolate caramel covered apple with a dollop of cool whip on top. I went on a quest to find out who brought the salad so I could find out what was in it. I was surprised when she told me it was chunks of Snickers candy bars. It was not the taste I was expecting when I took a bite of a fruit salad!
This Apple Snickers Salad recipe quickly became a family favorite. It is requested by my children all the time as a side dish. It’s an easy dessert recipe and so quick to make, it is now what I often take to potluck dinners – and now I am the one that people search out to find out what is in that delicious salad!
Ingredients in Snickers Salad
- apples – I like to use a mix of Red Delicious and Green Apples
- Snickers candy bars
- Cool Whip or any whipped topping
Apples to Use in Snickers Salad
The nice thing about this dessert salad is that you can use any apples you have. For the best flavor profile, I like to use one apple that is more sweet and one apple that is more tart. I usually pick Granny Smith apples as my tart apple. Its fun to have one green apple and one red apple for added color! This list gives some of the best apples you can use for sweetness and tartness.
Sweet Apples
- Gala
- Fuji
- Honeycrisp
- Jonagold
Tart Apples
- Granny Smith
- Red Delicious
- Pink Lady
- Cortland
Golden Delicious apples are right in the middle, but they are also great for this recipe, and salads in general. They have great texture and the flesh of the apple stays white after slicing for longer than most apples.
Substitutions for this Recipe
If Snickers aren’t your thing, you are feeding someone with a peanut allergy, or just want to try some variations, you can always change up the candy bar. My favorite substitute is Twix bars, but there are other options as well. Let us know in the comments if we left one out that you like!
Substitutions for Snickers Candy Bar
- Twix
- Milky Way
- 100 Grand Bar
- Reese’s
- Three Musketeers
- Butterfinger
- Baby Ruth
- chocolate chips
If you would like to substitute real whipped cream for the Cool Whip, go right ahead! We use Cool Whip for the convenience but have also used homemade whipped cream and it tastes great.
Homemade Whipped Cream
- 1 pint whipping cream
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla and whip until stiff peaks form.
Additions to this Recipe
If you are wanting to give the Snicker Apple Salad a little more depth, try adding a package of instant vanilla pudding mix or butterscotch pudding mix! This is a DELICIOUS version of this salad. All you have to do is combine a 6 oz. instant pudding mix with 1 cup of milk. Whisk together pudding mixture until thickened and fold in the Cool Whip before folding into the rest of the salad. Give it a try and you can decide which way you like it best!
This Snicker Apple Salad can easily be transformed into a Snickers Caramel Apple Salad by drizzling a little caramel topping or caramel sauce over the whipped cream. We have also heard of people adding bananas, pineapples, or fruit cocktail. At the end of the day, this recipe can be as simple or complicated as you want. Have fun with it and make it your own!
Make it a cheesecake style by mixing 4 ounces of cream cheese to the whipped topping.
Questions About Snickers Salad
This snickers salad contains 43 grams of carbohydrates per serving. It also has 8 mg of cholesterol, 3 g of protein, and 90 mg of sodium.
Snickers salad originated in the Midwest region of the US, similar to other side dishes like ambrosia salad or grape salad.
Yes! with only three ingredients and little to no prep work this is one of the easiest dessert recipes you can make in a pinch for any potluck or party.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Read Next: Easy Dessert Ideas
More Apple Recipes
If you have an abundance of apples this year or are just looking to try some new apple recipes, we have TONS to share with you!
- Dutch Apple Pie: This is our favorite fall pie. It is filled with tart apples and baked with a sweet and buttery crumb topping.
- Disneyland Apple Pie Caramel Apples: These Apple Pie Caramel Apples from Disneyland are my new favorite treat! Can’t make it to Disney? Bring the magic to your kitchen with this easy recipe!
- Traditional Apple Crisp: This is a no-frills, easy, traditional apple crisp recipe that can’t be beat. Just like the apple crisp the lunch lady used to make back in the good ol’ days (but better)!
- Copycat Bluebird Turkey and Brie Sandwich: Our Bluebird’s Turkey and Brie Sandwich Copycat is the best sandwich ever. It’s unique flavors are so good, like deli turkey, crisp apples, and brie cheese.
- Apple, Ham, and Cheddar Melts: Apple, Ham, and Cheddar Melts are my favorite lunch in the fall. It takes grilled cheese to a whole new level.
How to Make Snickers Salad
Snickers Salad
Video
Ingredients
- 6 apples I like to use a mix of Red Delicious and Green Apples
- 4 Snickers candy bars
- 8 ounces Cool Whip
Instructions
- Cut apples into bite size pieces. Dice Snickers bar into bite size pieces.
- Mix cut up Snickers bars and apples in a medium-sized bowl.
- Fold in Cool Whip.
Notes
Recipe Tips
- If you are wanting to give the Snicker Apple Salad a little more depth, try adding a package of vanilla or butterscotch pudding! This is a DELICIOUS version of this salad. All you have to do is combine a 6 oz. instant pudding with 1 cup of milk. Whisk together until thickened and fold in the Cool Whip before folding into the rest of the salad. Give it a try and you can decide which way you like it best!
- This Snicker Apple Salad can easily be transformed into a Snickers Caramel Apple Salad by drizzling a little caramel topping over the whipped cream. We have also heard of people adding bananas, pineapples, or fruit cocktail. At the end of the day, this recipe can be as simple or complicated as you want. Have fun with it and make it your own!
What a lovely idea! This is such a fun recipe for a gathering. I’ve never heard of this until now!
What a fun and easy summer snack, this is going to be the kids favorite.
It’s SO GOOD!
This is one of the best salads!! I mean it’s healthy, right?! Love the apple & snicker combination, especially with the topping!
So sweet and full of flavor!
Can’t wait to see my kids’ faces when they see this! Such a great idea!
This was a huge hit at our neighborhood BBQ last weekend!
The vanilla pudding is good, and I’ve tried butterscotch pudding instead and it is quite yummy. The recipe I have does call for the instant pudding.
Can i use whip cream? Like make a single bowl. One apple, some snickers, and top it with whip cream?
Yeah, I don’t see why not.. it would be delicious!
How can I make this low fat?
I can’t eat whipped cream
Thanx
Can you do Cool Whip? I know there are lighter versions of that…
Ooo! How about turning it into a pie you could freeze? Would that spare the browning apples?
Oooh I like the idea of freezing it but I don’t know about the apples.. they might brown too much. If you try it let us know how it turns out!
I put a pkg of vanilla instant pudding in mine, helps hold up longer
I add a small box of vanilla instant pudding to the cool whip and stir until the pudding is completely dissolved, then add the snickers. Yummy!
How do you keep apples from turning brown if you are making to take to a picnic/church function/etc?
You will want to serve the same day, if possible (though I have found myself eating leftovers a day after and they are still crisp and good). The sugar from the Cool Whip keeps them from browning so quickly.
Toss apples with fruit fresh, this helps apples from turning brown.
Thank you, I wondered this as well! Today is the 4th of July… guess what I’m making hahaha
You could sprinkle with fruit fresh.
Add one small ( the tiny one)can of crushed pineapple ,juice and all. You cannot taste it and it keeps the apples from browning.
All look wonderful.
You can’t go wrong with Snickers Bars in the recipe! Thank you for visiting our site!
If you want to take it really over the top, try adding strawberry yogurt to this, as well. (Half/half on cool whip/yogurt.) I worked food service at my university and that was a special treat that would get made up on a few occasions. I always cleared it before it was fully empty to keep some for myself. 😉
Oooh great idea! thank you for sharing!
This is delicious without a doubt! HOWEVER, do NOT make the mistake (that I did) and use FAT FREE cool whip. It was a disaster. 🙂
Can we serve this salad like a side dish, with any kind of food or it’s a dessert for kids, only. It looks delicious.
Yes you can . I use the small bite size snickers that come unwrapped in a zipped lock bag,like the bite size Reeses.
I have an aunt that used to bring this to Thanksgiving every year. It was by far all of the kids’ favorite! Its an easy recipe to change up too! Add grapes, canned fruit cocktail, Milky Way candy bars, Twix candy bars….there are sooo many options 🙂
Such a fun idea, my boys would love this!
What could you use instead of cool whip??? regular whipped cream??
Yes you can use whipping cream instead of cool whip
I like granny smith apples, raisins, and duke’s mayo mix and eat.
add a little sugar