Apple Cranberry Coleslaw is the perfect way to mix things up for fall! Loaded with fresh apples, dried cranberries, chopped walnuts, and green onions, this coleslaw is crunchy, sweet, and so delicious!
Let’s get one thing straight. Just because summer is coming to an end doesn’t mean that salad season is over! And this Apple Cranberry Coleslaw is proof. It combines a summer classic with two fall flavors – apples and cranberries – for a quick and easy side dish that moves us right from one season to the next.
I’ve made this recipe SO many times… for Labor Day parties, fall cookouts, football games, and even holidays. It’s fresh, it’s seasonal, and with all the different colors, I love how bright and beautiful it is!
And it’s literally ALWAYS a hit! Because everyone loves a good slaw (Cilantro Lime Slaw, anyone?) and this one is just the perfect fall twist. Add it to your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner menu and your guests will rave about it! Just wait and see.
what you’ll need for this recipe
Shredded cabbage – I used one 14-ounce bag of coleslaw mix, which is about 6-7 cups. Substitute fresh shredded cabbage for the bagged mix if you prefer.
Apple – I added one large apple, chopped. Gala, Honeycrisp, or any of your favorites will work well!
Dried cranberries – I also added 1/2 cup dried cranberries. Substitute dried cherries if you prefer.
Walnuts – I added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts for crunch.
Onion – I also added 4 sliced green onions for extra savory flavor.
Dressing – I made a simple dressing using 3/4 cup mayo, 3/4 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup honey, and 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger.
how to make apple cranberry coleslaw
Combine the slaw ingredients. In a large bowl, combine coleslaw mix, apple, dried cranberries, walnuts, and green onions. Toss to mix.
Combine the dressing ingredients. In a separate small bowl, combine the mayo, yogurt or sour cream, honey, and ginger. Mix well.
Add the dressing to the slaw. Pour dressing over coleslaw and stir until evenly coated. *For a less creamy coleslaw, use 1/2 cup mayo, 1/2 cup plain yogurt, 3 Tablespoons honey, and 1/2 teaspoon ginger.
Make Ahead & Storage Tips
This recipe is easy to make ahead for stress-free entertaining! To do so, combine the ingredients as directed, wrap in plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
Recipe Variations
- Use freshly shredded cabbage in place of coleslaw mix
- Substitute broccoli slaw for coleslaw
- Add or substitute sliced pears
- Substitute red onion for the green onion OR omit the onion altogether
- Substitute dried cherries for the dried cranberries
- Use any type of apple (Granny Smith, Gala, Honeycrisp, or Golden Delicious would all work well)
- Add your favorite crumbled cheese (feta, goat cheese, or blue cheese)
- Use any type of chopped nuts in place of walnuts OR omit the nuts altogether
More Apple Cranberry Recipes You’ll Love
Apples & Cranberries make the perfect fall combo. Check out our other apple cranberry favorites!
Apple Cranberry Coleslaw
Ingredients
Coleslaw
- 14 ounce bag 3-color coleslaw mix
- 1 large apple chopped
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 4 green onions sliced
Dressing:
- 3/4 cup mayo
- 3/4 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3/4 teaspoon dried ground ginger
Instructions
- Combine coleslaw ingredients in a large bowl.
- In a small bowl, combine dressing ingredients and mix well.
- Pour dressing over coleslaw and stir until evenly coated.
- *For a less creamy coleslaw, use 1/2 cup mayo, 1/2 cup plain yogurt, 3 Tablespoons honey, and 1/2 teaspoon ginger.
Notes
Recipe Variations
- Use freshly shredded cabbage in place of coleslaw mix
- Substitute broccoli slaw for coleslaw
- Add or substitute sliced pears
- Substitute red onion for the green onion OR omit the onion altogether
- Substitute dried cherries for the dried cranberries
- Use any type of apple (Granny Smith, Gala, Honeycrisp, or Golden Delicious would all work well)
- Add your favorite crumbled cheese (feta, goat cheese, or blue cheese)
- Use any type of chopped nuts in place of walnuts OR omit the nuts altogether
Erin @ Texanerin Baking says
I hope their first day went well! And this looks so very delicious.
Rita says
Hi! I am drooling over the screen! I must make this but what kind of apples did you use or recommend?
Cathy Trochelman says
I used Honey Crisp Apple.
Debby Pieracci says
Great minds think alike. I thought either honey crisp or Granny Smith. Can’t wait to try it.
Elissa Weeks says
Yeah, I would tend to go toward the tart side. Especially in a dish that has mayonnaise in it. Maybe a combination of green and red.
Renee says
Has anyone tried Pears instead of apples? I have some I need to use
Cathy Trochelman says
I think pears would be mushy in this recipe… I wouldn’t use them unless they’re decently firm. Hope this helps!
Sheena @ Hot Eats and Cool Reads says
I love the sweet and savory flavors in this coleslaw! So perfect for fall!
Annie says
I love this flavor packed fall version of a classic!!
Teresa says
Can you use miracle whip instead of Mayo…. I’m not a fan of Mayo!!
Cathy Trochelman says
Yes, feel free!
amanda |The Chunky Chef says
Love the Fall twist on the classic summer food 🙂
Jess says
I hope the girls had a great first day! My girls started this past Wednesday and I missed them, how certainly was more quiet ! Is coleslaw looks perfect for Labor Day weekend, thank you for sharing!!
Renee - Kudos Kitchen says
This is the prettiest coleslaw I think I’ve ever seen. Plus I really love all the textures you’ve added. I’m going to make this as soon as I can!
Meg @ With Salt and Wit says
What amazing flavors you have in this! I want some today!
Joanie @ ZagLeft says
I hope everyone had a great first day, Cathy. This salad looks absolutely delicious. I love all the fresh flavors here and I know my family would love it too.
Lynnette says
I’m just curious, why “not Greek”?? This looks beautiful! I can’t wait to try it, but plan to play with the dressing, subbing something for the mayo. Anyway, I was just curious about the yogurt. Thank you! (Beautiful pictures…if it tastes half as good as it looks, it will be amazing!).
Mequila says
Hi, I was wondering if you tried it with just yogurt instead of mayo? Any tips?
Cathy Trochelman says
Hi Mequila, it would work with just yogurt but the taste would be a little different. You would probably need to add more of the seasonings!
Barbara Sweat says
My adult men asked me to keep this recipe; rare request!
Why not “real Greek” yogurt? Sometimes hard to find!
Added 1/2 cup of dried cherries, so very fruit-heavy for Thanksgiving.
Debbie says
Family raved about this dish! New holiday favorite.
Cathy Trochelman says
Yay! Thanks for the feedback, Debbie!
Maylin says
Love this….someone bought it for thanksgiving dinner 2016 & iam planning to do it for my holiday luncheon at wk????????
Cathy Trochelman says
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for letting me know!
Gail Needham says
Is the ginger fresh grated? Or do you use that much ginger powder?
Dora says
This looks awful good. I would like to try it but what could I use in place of the honey?
Tomi says
I was also wondering what could be used in place of honey? Maple syrup?
Cathy Trochelman says
Yes, agave or maple syrup would work well.
Roslyn Scruggs says
There are a zillion kinds of apples in the supermarkets and farmers markets when fall arrives. Which apple did you use and will the apples brown if the salad is made and kept in the frige overnight? Thanks for your assistance.
Margaret says
Fabulous. Great tasting dressing and very flavourful salad. Definitely a keeper. Looking forward to taking it to a shower.
Terry N says
This was wonderful. I did not have any plain yogurt so I used sour cream and it was awesome. My whole family loved it. I will definitely make this again and again.
Paula says
I usually don’t change ingredients, but has anyone used all mayo?
Teresa Marie McGuire says
I used buttermilk instead of yogurt and cinnamon instead of ginger. My husband loved it! Worked well with apples and walnuts. =)
Christine Sowerby says
Your dishes look amazing. I can’t wait to try. First one will be the Cranberry/apple coleslaw.. Honey Crisp is my apple of choice, and I always have bags of coleslaw as I mix it in my everyday salads.
Amanda says
Do you eat this coleslaw with a fork or is it more like a dip?
Cathy Trochelman says
You eat it with a fork like a salad.
Rita says
I made your recipe of Apple Cranberry Coleslaw last night and it was good. Left over will probably be even better today.
Marty Ness-White says
I was intrigued with the recipe and wanted to serve it with some sweet and spicy smoked pork tenderloin. I couldn’t understand why not to use Greek yogurt since it is all we eat so I decided to give it a go with it anyway.
I followed all the instructions except substituting walnuts for pecans (my favorite in everythin), fresh ginger for powdered and the Greek yogurt instead of plain. I then added a 1/2 lemon juiced and some pink Himalayan salt and only 1 1/2 tbsp of honey.
Yummo!!! I find that with the sweetness of the craisins and apples it doesn’t need that much honey.
Thank you for the recipe!
Patricia Hardy says
I needed a sugar free version of this salad, so I omitted the honey from the dressing and added 2 Tablespoons of Splenda instead. It provided just enough sweetness without the aftertaste. This salad was truly satisfying.
Clems_Mom says
Absolute hit at my partner’s potluck for work! His director said she must have the recipe as its one of the best coleslaws he has ever had! I tweaked a bit and added probably half a tablespoon of cinnamon and a pinch of salt. We did use greek yogurt too and I believe I added extra dried ginger too.
Tina L. says
I just made this and it is wonderful! I’m not much of a coleslaw fan – I usually find it too sticky sweet. But this wasn’t. It was really fresh tasting. Perfect!
I made it exactly as written (left out the ginger though) and used Forager non-dairy cashew yogurt. I want to make a double recipe for christmas, so I experimented and made it last night and the apples didn’t turn brown at all. What I’ll do differently next time is: I’ll double the recipe but add three apples instead of two, make it the night before but add the cranberries and walnuts the next day. Overnight the cranberries turned the dressing a little pink and the walnuts were kind of soggy. I think I’ll get some rave reviews for this! Thanks!!
Pat wate says
I can’t find plain yogurt that’s not Greek. Why can’t I use Greek? Thanks
Cathy Trochelman says
I’ve updated the recipe. You can use Greek yogurt and if it’s too thick, just add a squeeze or lemon or apple juice.
Terry says
There are no apples listed in the ingredients for this cranberry, apple coleslaw????
Cathy Trochelman says
Yes, the recipe states 1 large apple.
Ann says
Hello
This salad looks amazing !
I am allergic to ginger. Could you suggest another seasoning to replace it?
Cathy Trochelman says
What about nutmeg or cinnamon?
Nanette Jernigan says
This Apple Cranberry Coleslaw is amazing! Made it today to take to our daughter’s house for Thanksgiving and I hope they will love it as much as my husband and I do! I shortened the amount of dressing, but ended up putting the difference back in and used almost all of the full amount. Silly me, peeled the apple before chopping and realized after the fact that your recipe said chopped, not peeled and chopped, so not as pretty as yours but so good! Thank you!
Paula says
Thanks for the recipe, this was great! I used an Ambrosia apple, was perfect in this. I also found a packaged cranberry/glazed walnut salad topper that was good and added an extra touch of sweetness. This is definitely a keeper!
Lele Paulson says
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit. I had to omit the walnuts because my sister can’t eat nuts and I omitted the green onions because I don’t care for them, and defaulted to plain Greek yogurt because that’s all I could find. It was delicious and I’m thinking of making it again for Christmas dinner.
My only issue was that a good deal of liquid seemed to pool in the bottom of the bowl after the salad sat on the table for a while. Would that be because of the Greek yogurt? I’d like to be able to avoid that next time.
Thanks!
Cathy Trochelman says
It may be because of the Greek yogurt, so substituting the sour cream might make a difference.
Nancy Adams says
This is common with any coleslaw recipe. The salt draws liquid out of the cabbage; that is why I dress it just before serving. I drain leftovers before putting away.
Beverly says
I just made the coleslaw with the lesser amount of dressing. We are having friends over for dinner and I intend to serve it. I hope they arrive early otherwise I may have to make more, as I can’t stop eating it!! So good- even my husband is into it and he normally does not like the addition of nuts in dishes. Thanks for this recipe, I think it will be my go-to coleslaw recipe from now on!
Cindy says
Can’t make it. I cannot find a small plain yogurt and I’m not going to buy a huge tubd! Does anybody use anything as a substitute for the plain yogurt.
Cathy Trochelman says
You can substitute sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. You may just need to add a touch more liquid (lemon or apple juice) if it’s too thick.
Tim says
Looks so good! Want to try with a little added chopped celery. Yum! I’m
Martie Mitchell says
Love this recipe! My new “go to” when I don’t want blah, blah green salad or Cole slaw. Perfect with any kind of pork!
Madeleine Vanyo says
I absolutely love your recipes!!
They are easy and yet so delicious!!!!
Julie Tribbey says
Made this today. Very tasty and easy. Love all the ingredients. Next time I will cut down on the amount of everything in the dressing except the ginger. Memorial Day coming up and I will bring this!
Carolyn says
That coleslaw salad was a hit
Thanks
Will make again
Sue says
This looks absolutely amazing! Sending Hubby to the store to get ingredients that I don’t have on Hand. will give you a report when I make it!
Sally Dehnert says
Apple cranberry coleslaw looks delicious. I’m going to make it.
Angie Downey says
I also used Honey Crisp apples 🍎. My husband is a coleslaw fanatic,and I must say this is the best slaw we have tasted. Thank for this wonderful recipe.
Marieta Serrano says
I love all your salad recipe ❤️Thank you for sharing.
Cathy Trochelman says
Thank you!
Julie says
Thank you for such good ideas🤗🍁🍂☝️
Sheri Hale says
I love this salad. I use a Granny Smith apple and use 1 TB of fresh grated ginger. I really like the cranberries so I upped it to 3/4 cup and roughly chopped them. I have used both pecans and walnuts and like it equally with either one.
Paula Parkhurst says
I made this using 2 cosmic crisp apples, peeled., 3/4 cup walnuts & dried cranberries, and dairy free violife sour cream. Was fantastic! The next night my husband asked me to add some shrimp, and served it over a bed of spinach. Delicious!
James Abbott says
I am going to make this for Easter
Nanette says
I finally found your page again. I found this recipe a couple of years ago and it was such a hit. When my daughter asked for the recipe, I could not remember where I got it from. So we looked up another one online and it was just not the same.
Faye Swift says
What a great addition to my side dishes. I made it for a party and got so many compliments of how crunchy and tasty it was. I will definitely make again.
Tracy says
I used red cabbage and yellow delicious apples. Super good.
Jean says
Very good. I used pecans and yogurt.