A sweet out-of-the-ordinary dressing makes this macaroni salad special. My aunt gave me the recipe and it has become one of my favorites. I occasionally leave out the green pepper if I know that people don't like it, and it still tastes great. &mdash;Idalee Scholz, Cocoa Beach, Florida


Sweet Macaroni Salad

(16 ounces) elbow macaroni

carrots,

green pepper, chopped

red onion, chopped

mayonnaise

(14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

cider vinegar

sugar

salt

pepper

Oh My Gosh! Yum! Made as written except the carrots. I used what we had in the refrigerator ((2)). All that tried it were impressed. We plan on putting it on a regular rotation.

I was a bit leery of using condensed milk, but really did the trick!  I made a half batch as it's only me.   A week later I was making another half-batch!

I basically followed this recipe. After reading other reviews, I decided to cut the sweetened condensed milk to 1/2 c. and also the vinegar to 1/4 cup. I also cut the sugar back to 1 T. I also made the dressing in a separate bowl, and used only 1/2, to mix everything. Plus, I added in 1/2 c. sweet peas, thawed, for color instead of the green pepper. The next day, after it sat in the frig overnight, I added the rest of the dressing, since the noodles do soak up the dressing overnight.

Excellent!!  Loved it!!  Has already become a favorite.

Made this yesterday for a potluck get-together, and got a lot of compliments. One lady told me she doesn't normally like macaroni salad, but really liked this one.  My husband absolutely loves it.  I followed the recipe exactly. I have a local cookbook from my husband's hometown in Southwest Iowa that contains this exact recipe - the only variation is that the other recipe calls for double the sugar. I'd say 1/2 cup of sugar is plenty! Since it's a hometown recipe - that's probably why he loved it so much, and has already requested that I make it again for future get-togethers.

I made this macaroni salad for dinner last night.  It was delicious!  I used cavatapi pasta instead of elbow macaroni and I only used 2 carrots instead of 4....but everything else stayed the same.  I delicious change from our usual "not sweet" mac salad.  I will be making this for more picnics this year!!

Way too sweet for my taste. I've made this a couple times thinking i could like it but don't care for the sweetened condensed milk.

EVERYONE in my family loved it.  Added chopped broccoli, chopped spinach, a little sweet pickle relish, really whatever is ripe in my garden. Always looking for a place to hide veggies for a family who is so picky. If they only knew...haha. Love love mayo but 2 cups is a bit much.

I’ve been making this recipe for years and everyone loves it. To the person who asked about leaving out the condensed milk. I wouldn’t. That’s what makes it different. Yes there’s a lot of sauce. If it’s too much don’t use it all. I get a kick out of reviews where people change the recipe the first time they make it. It’s not really a review of the recipe then is it but so what? It’s certainly not worth chastising someone over it.

This is a really delicious macaroni salad but unless you're feeding an army, you might consider halving the recipe.

We have been making this in our family for at least 20 yrs. Nowhere we have ever taken it was it ever disliked and the recipe is asked for so much we just take printed copies because we know it's coming.  I think the problem with the low reviewers is that they are trying to make a SWEET salad into a SAVORY when this is NOT that kind of pasta salad. And anytime you take away or add things to it, you really have no right to review it at all unless you made it exactly as is the first time.

My husband loves Amish Macaroni Salad, a salad that is sold at Giant Eagle stores in the Somerset PA area. I have been on the lookout for years for a recipe for it and was unable to find one. The first time I made this, he took one bite and said "Amish Macaroni Salad!" I will make this again and again. Very good, not dry at all like most of the recipes for macaroni salad are. Although there does seem to be too much dressing. Use the extra for tossed salad or coleslaw.

How exciting to find this recipe here!  It was passed on to me years ago from an elderly aunt, and has become a family favorite.  Here are a couple of possible tweaks... I cook the vinegar (I use white) and sugar just until the sugar is melted, then cool it before mixing in the other dressing ingredients.  When I want to make it a meal in a bowl, I add finely diced ham.  When I'm feeling wild and crazy, I add finely diced Spam!!  Next time I make this, I will try it with cider vinegar, and cut back the sugar a bit.  Hmmm, now I'm hungry!

Delish!!!  Made exactly to recipe.  How else can you review right?  Tangy and sweet combination a hit.  Reminded us of an old time flavor long forgotten.  Classic potluck dish.  The recipe makes a lot of dressing.  I thought it had enough at half.  I will use the lefttover dressing on another salad....win win!

I know it says sweet... and I made it as instructed but it was SWEET.  I had to add more mayo to get the wierd after taste of the condesened milk out of my mouth. lol!

This is by far my favorite pasta salad! The only bad thing is that it has to sit overnight! As soon as I'm done making it, I want to eat it right away! One of my friends first brought this salad to a cookout and everyone there loved it.  She told us she got the recipe from Taste of Home.  I sat on the internet and looked until I found it and now it's a must have every summer!

I love this salad, I have been making it for years. I got the recipe from my Grandmother. the only thing I do differently is I use miracle whip instead of mayo. my grandmother is from Nebraska and that is what that corner of the state uses primarily.

This is a great salad for a crowd.  Letting it sit overnight is a must and the salad actually gets better with age.  I add about 8 oz. of sharp cheddar cheese, diced, and 1/2 pkg. frozen sweet baby peas right out of the package.  I also substitute diced red pepper for the green pepper as green pepper does not agree with my husband.  I love that almost everyone has seconds!  A couple hints....it will seem like the dressing makes way too much but use it all.  The pasta really soaks it up overnight.  If you are making it for a small group, do a half recipe and use the rest of the sweetened condensed milk in a pan of 7 layerbars, sometimes called Magic Cookie Bars.

Made this using the large elbow macaroni noodles for a party and it was amazing, everyone loved it, they all wanted the recipe and it was so easy to make,  I let it set in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving, cant wait to make this again.  Definitely a party pleaser.

this was a good tasting salad however I did add more sugar than the recipe calls for as it was too vinegary for my families taste. the dressing made twice as much as needed and I threw out half of it. Half the dressing ingredients would have been plenty for a 16 oz box of macaroni. I will for sure make it again. Thank you for a good salad recipe!

https://videodam.tmbi.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SweetMacaroniSalad_DIYD_23228_043019_H.mp4

Check out this video for how to make a Sweet Macaroni Salad

sweet macaroni salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total: 20 minutes

Servings: 16

Author : Taste of Home

Ingredients

Instructions

Top Similar Recipes from Across the Web

Sweet Mae's Macaroni Salad

Sweet and Tangy Summer Macaroni Sal...

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad

Macaroni Salad