Strawberry Pretzel Salad
Original Recipe
Notes
You'll need about 8 ounces of hard mini pretzel twists to create 2 1/3 cups crushed pretzels. Use a high-powered food processor or blender to crush the pretzels. You can leave a few bigger chunks, if you'd like. For the rest of the recipe, be sure to allow time for softening or cooling ingredients. The cream cheese and frozen whipped topping will need to be brought to room temperature, while the pretzel crust and strawberry gelatin will need to be cooled before moving onto the next step. Otherwise, if you layer the ingredients while they are warm, it will melt the middle cream-cheese layer. Finally, do not follow the instructions on the box of strawberry gelatin. You'll need to use less water in this recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 1/3 cups crushed salted hard mini pretzels
1 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup and 1 tablespoon white sugar, separated
8 ounces cream cheese
8 ounces frozen whipped topping
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups strawberries, sliced
6 ounces strawberry gelatin
2 1/4 cups boiling water
Pretzels and whipped cream, for topping
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a large 9x13-inch baking dish with butter, canola oil, or cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, add the crushed pretzels, melted butter, and 1 tablespoon sugar. Mix until thoroughly combined.
- Press the mixture into the greased dish, creating an even layer.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.
- Let the crust sit for 20 to 30 minutes, or until completely cooled.
- While the crust is cooling, bring the cream cheese and whipped topping to room temperature.
- In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, vanilla extract, and 1/2 cup sugar.
- Fold in the whipped topping, making sure to avoid overmixing.
- Spread the cream-cheese mixture onto the cooled crust in an even layer.
- Add the sliced strawberries on top.
- Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- In a large bowl, combine the strawberry gelatin and boiling water. Stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved.
- Let sit for 20 to 30 minutes or until mostly cooled.
- Pour on top of the cream-cheese layer to cover the strawberries. It's OK if not all of the strawberries are submerged.
- Cover the baking dish, and chill in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours or overnight.
- Slice and enjoy with pretzels and a dollop of whipped cream.
Information
- Category
- Desserts
- Yield
- 12 slices
- Total Time
- 9 minutes, 59 seconds