The recipe was published by General Foods (since merged into what is now Kraft Heinz) and called for two General Foods products: Jell-O instant pistachio pudding and Cool Whip whipped topping, a whipped-cream substitute.

"[7] Kraft, however, did not refer to it as Watergate Salad until consumers started requesting the recipe for it under the name.

Syndicated household advice columnists Anne Adams and Nan Nash-Cummings, in their "Anne & Nan" column of October 9, 1997, reported that name came from the similar "Watergate Cake" (which shares most of the same ingredients):[8] "The recipes came out during the Watergate scandal.

"[9] Both cake and salad were part of a trend for satirically named recipes such as Nixon's Perfectly Clear Consommé and Liddy's Clam-Up Chowder.

[10] In 1922 Helen Keller published a similar recipe, calling for canned diced pineapple, nuts, marshmallows, whipped cream and other ingredients.