Fruity Walnut Crunch Salad Recipe with Marie Callender's Pies

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I am one of those people that LOVE winter! Don't get me wrong...I love spring and especially fall too, but I love getting to wear winter clothes...the boots, the scarves...AND I love the cold weather recipes, the warm beverages, and the warm food! So I decided to bake some Marie Callender's pies recently for my family for dinner, and came up with a great recipe of a fruity and crunchy side gelatin salad to go with it. With the recent cold-front moving through, pot pies are the perfect comfort food to warm you up. It was the perfect combination on a cold night! Some warm yummy pie goodness, and a sweet salad to go next to it. 

For those of you that don't know, I have five (Yep, 5!) children and every single one of them has their own opinions and tastes (no matter how much I try otherwise! ha!). So choosing a dinner that everyone will at least EAT (let alone like) is not always an easy task. We have a rule in our house, that you at least have to try it, and eat as many bites as you are old.
So if you are three and unsure if you will like your dinner, you have to at least try and eat 3 bites, and if you are 12, you have to at least try and eat 12 bites. Thankfully though...Marie Callenders meals make it easier on my family in that department, with all of the different flavors/pies that they offer. I found mine all at Walmart. 

My kids can all pick out the flavor and pie of their choice and each of them can be happy about their own choice. No complaints! (AND then, at the dinner table, there is even some taste testing and mixing together of pie flavors that is fun for everyone too!) 

Between my five kiddos, they picked one of these three varieties:

They were super easy to bake in the oven and warm your whole house up! OR if you're in a hurry and running from your day to your evening activities (like we are on basketball game nights!) they work great cooked in the microwave too! In fact, the box even turns into this handy dandy little tray that helps them cook even faster in the microwave!

And every single one of them went great with that sweet fruity salad I mentioned above. It was an easy one to make and a big hit in our house, so I thought I'd share the recipe for you to use along with your winter meals as well.

See? All smiles, and no complaints!

 Fruity Walnut Crunch Salad

Ingredients:

1 can whole cranberries

1 can pineapple chunks

1 large 6 oz package of raspberry flavored (Jello) or gelatin mix

3 oz chopped walnuts

Boil your water and dissolve your gelatin (Jello) mix into 1 1/4 cups boiling water.

Then add your cranberries and sauce. 

Cut your pineapple chunks into smaller pieces (but not as small and mushy as crushed pineapple).

Whisk all together. 

Then add your chopped walnuts and stir again. 

Pour into bowl that you will serve in. Large or (several) small.

Chill until set. 

And serve to many smiles! 

Easy peasy! And so sweet and yummy next to your pot pie!

You can visit: http://www.mariecallendersmeals.com/ to learn more about Marie Callenders meals and all of the yummy creations and flavors they offer and they even have a great site at: http://potpieplease.com for you to visit for some more yummy recipes too! I also, personally appreciate and love that they support our troops with their Comforts from Home program. Love supporting our troops!

What is your favorite go-to meal on a cold night? I love hearing from you!