Frog eye salad is a lovely combination of pasta, pudding, and crushed fruits, making it a perfect lightly sweet summer side dish. Also called a Acini Di Pepe Pasta Salad, its a super classic and homemade dessert side dish that keeps the spoonfuls coming.
Mix 2 cups milk and 1 package pudding together and whisk well. Refrigerate for at least five minutes (the longer the better so do this step first)
Drain the juice of the oranges, tidbits and crushed pineapple (as best as you can for the crushed pineapple) into a large saucepan and set the fruit aside.
Add 2 cups water into the juice saucepan.
Bring pan to a boil and stir in Acini Di Pepe pasta. Heat according to Pasta package directions (about 10 minutes).
When Acini Di Pepe pasta is done, drain excess water and rinse pasta with cold water.
Note: I had to put a coffee filter into my colander so the pasta didn't' fall through the holes. A fine mesh strainer would work best.
Add oranges, pineapple and pasta to a large mixing bowl.
Stir in pudding and thawed whipped topping.
Fold in mini marshmallows.
Refrigerate for 4 hours before serving to allow mixture to thicken up a bit.
Alternate Frog Eye Salad using PASTINA Pasta
This step is best done first to give pudding time to thicken. Mix 2 cups milk and 1 package of INSTANT pudding together well. Put in fridge for a min of 5 minutes to thicken.
Cook 8 oz Pastina according to instructions on box. Pastina are teeny tiny pasta stars that are a great substitute for the texture of the recipe above. Once pasta is done, rinse with cold water to prevent sticking. Let drain. If Pasta sticks at all, you can use 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil to prevent sticking.
Drain oranges, pineapple tidbits and crushed pineapple juice. Fold in whipped topping.
Combine fruit, cooked Pastina, and Instant pudding in a bowl and mix gently with a spatula. Add 2 cups mini marshmallows.
At this point, your frog eye salad may still be a little "wet".
Fridge for 4 hours to thicken before serving
Video
Notes
NOTE: Texture of Frog Eye Salad is quite like Tapioca pudding.