Frog Eye Salad Might Sound Unusual, But It's A Dessert Classic

The U.S. has a vast and varied culinary landscape and that's part of the allure of heading out on a multi-state road trip. You'll find yourself sampling some unique dishes that are quintessentially Midwestern and you'll even find yourself exploring things like regional gravy styles. Hamburger gravy, anyone? Another popular dish with a long-standing connection to tradition is the strangely named frog eye salad. 

It appears without fail on tables at potlucks and holidays and it's so popular that in 2014, The New York Times reported that it was the most unusual Thanksgiving recipe in Utah's surrounding states of Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado. While Utah's most-searched term was actually funeral potatoes, we presume this was because everyone already had their recipes for frog eye salad. Thankfully, there are no frogs involved in this meal and instead, it's safe to say that the dish's name comes from the type of pasta that's usually used. 

There are a few things that most recipes agree you have to have and it starts with the small, spherical acini di pepe pasta that likely gives the dish its name. Cook and drain the pasta, then mix an egg custard thickened with sugar and pineapple juice (or another kind of whipped topping, like Cool Whip). Let it cool and thicken, then add marshmallows, canned fruit (typically pineapple and mandarin oranges), and shredded coconut. If it sounds a little familiar, there's a good reason for that, as it's similar to a Southern treat called ambrosia salad. 

The difference between the two is that frog eye salad is built on pasta, while ambrosia isn't. Just like ambrosia, there are a few popular additions that are added to some recipes. It might be made even sweeter with confectioners' sugar and maraschino cherries, or creamier with bananas. Some recipes swap out the pineapple and pineapple juice for canned peaches, and lemon juice is often added too.

If the idea of eggs is the part of this dish that gives you pause, there's variations that swap out the egg custard for a vanilla pudding. No matter how you make it, just remember the important part — it's meant to be shared.

The short answer is that no one knows. Most sources say that it's believed that it was first whipped up in Utah, which makes sense. It's long been associated with being served at the large gatherings of friends, family, and church members that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is so famous for. However, Vintage Dish & Tell did a bit of fascinating research that revealed frog eye salad's history well outside of the areas that it's traditionally enjoyed.

They found a cookbook that wasn't associated with the Mormons but with St. Philip the Deacon Lutheran Church in Minnesota. It was dated to 1992 and from there, they tracked down the member of the church committee who had written the cookbook and asked her about the dish. She remembered the recipe as being one of those 1970s-era recipes that were printed on commercial packaging and in this case, she said that her family had gotten it from Creamette's acini di pepe pasta.

And that's some pretty interesting food for thought. Although frog eye salad is often said to have been created in Mormon kitchens and it's lauded as an almost uniquely Mormon thing, it seems as though the story is much more complicated, commercialized, and widespread than it's often the credit of being.