This recipe is a spin off combination from a salad our dear friends Mark and Vicki introduced us to. And also from a simple brown sugar and sour cream sauce I make to top fresh strawberries. So keeping both dishes in mind, I whipped up this delicious salad to serve yesterday for a family dinner.

Now granted, there are many recipes out there for grape salad and they were my inspiration for this recipe. (Thanks to Vicki, that is!) And my recipe is not that different from all the others out there. Except, that I have greatly reduced the amount of sugar used in this dish. I have also used both granulated and brown sugar in the dressing itself.  And frankly, I think the combination of sugars makes for a much tastier flavor than using granulated sugar alone. The granulated sugar gives the salad the sweetness it requires, while the brown sugar gives the dressing an almost caramel richness.

So instead of sprinkling brown sugar on top as a garnish, which seems to be regarded as the proper way to use brown sugar in this salad, I decided to add it in with the other dressing ingredients. (I’ve always been a bit avant-garde when it comes to culinary integrity, so why change now?) Suffice it to say, the salad was well received yesterday and I am happy to share the recipe with you today.

And before I release you to continue browsing the internet or in some way perform a task much more beneficial than reading my ramblings, I must tell you, even though you can quickly glean the information by simply reading the recipe below, this dish is way easy to make. Nuff said!

4 oz. cream cheese, room temp.

½ c. sour cream

1 T. granulated sugar

1 T. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 lb. seedless red grapes (cut in half if really large)

1 lb. seedless green grapes (cut in half if really large)

½ c. toasted roughly chopped pecan pieces

In a medium mixing bowl, blend the cream cheese, sour cream, sugars, and vanilla together until creamy and smooth. Add the grapes and carefully stir until the grapes are evenly coated. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Just before serving stir in ¾ of the pecans and transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle remaining pecan pieces on top for garnish.