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Strawberry Pretzel Salad

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By Jessica Walker
Updated Sep 20, 2024
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Is it a salad or is it a dessert? Our strawberry pretzel salad recipe is one of the retro gelatin-based recipes that has been a favorite for holiday gatherings and backyard potlucks, alike. In the 1950’s, gelatin recipes like this one, were known as salads, even though they were sweet enough for dessert!

What’s not to love? A sweet and creamy cream cheese filling sits between a delicious berry gelatin layer and a sweet-and-salty, crunchy pretzel crust. It’s simple to put together, can be made ahead, and feeds a crowd. No wonder it’s a traditional favorite at holiday meals (its cheery strawberry-red shade adds a pop of color to holiday spread), potlucks, or backyard BBQs.

How To Make Strawberry Pretzel Salad

Whether you are new to cooking or you’ve been around the kitchen for years, this simple strawberry pretzel dessert recipe is easy to make and is guaranteed to elicit wows at any gathering. Here are the general directions for making it—but use the recipe for all the specifics, so it’s sure to turn out perfectly:

Prepare the Strawberry Topping

Dissolve the gelatin in boiling water and stir in the strawberries. Refrigerate the mixture until it’s only partially set. If it’s too runny, it will seep down into the other layers. If it’s completely set, you can’t spoon it over the filling for a nice even layer on top.

Make the Pretzel Crust

Mix crushed pretzels with melted butter and sugar then press into the baking dish. Bake and cool the crust before adding the filling.

Mix the Creamy Filling

Beat thawed whipped topping, softened cream cheese, and sugar until smooth. Be sure the whipped topping is completely thawed, and the cream cheese has softened on the counter for about 30 minutes prior to using so that they can be beaten into a smooth mixture.

Layer the Salad

Spread the creamy filling over the cooled crust. Refrigerate the salad until the cream cheese filling is cool and the gelatin topping in the bowl is partially set. Spoon the gelatin over the topping.

Refrigerate and Serve

Refrigerate the salad at least 4 hours but up to 6 hours until it holds firm when the dish is jiggled. If it’s soft, the pieces won’t hold their shape when served. Cut into pieces, serve, and enjoy!

Making Strawberry Pretzel Salad in Advance

This pretzel salad recipe is a great one to make ahead to get a jump on preparing your meal or if you need to bring a dish to share. Since it is made in advance, you can get the crust in and out of the oven hours before you need it for other dishes! It needs time for each layer to set up, so they cut beautifully into nicely shaped pieces.

The pretzel Jell-O® salad is best prepared and served the same day, so that the pretzel crust will have the best crunchy texture. As it sits longer, the moisture from the cream cheese filling will leach into the pretzel crust, making it less crunchy and more tough.

Since this is a gelatin-based dessert, it needs to be kept cold, as heating it will melt the gelatin. And because it has cream cheese in it, always serve it straight from the fridge or leave it out no longer than 2 hours. This will prevent any bacteria from growing that could cause food borne illness.

The Best Pretzels and Jell-O to Use

Either regular-size or mini salted pretzels in the traditional pretzel shape can be used for our best strawberry pretzel salad. Use what you have in the cupboard (if they are still fresh and crunchy) and measure 2 cups before they are crushed. To crush them place them in a resealable food-storage bag and pound with a rolling pin, meat mallet, or even the back of a pan! This should keep the mess down. They don’t have to be crushed to a fine powder, but the pieces should be small (about 1/4 to 1/2-inch each).

For the best strawberry flavor, we used regular strawberry-flavored gelatin with thawed frozen strawberry slices, for a burst of strawberry flavor in every serving. The salad is also faster to make when you start with pre-sliced and perfectly sweetened berries, rather than making your own. Want to change up the flavor of this strawberry pretzel salad with Jell-O? See the delicious ideas below in the strawberry pretzel salad variations section.

Strawberry Pretzel Salad Variations

Change up the flavor of the gelatin and/or the frozen fruit in this recipe, and you’ve got an entirely different dessert. Try any of these delicious combinations:

Cherry-Berry Pretzel Salad: Use 32 oz of thawed frozen cherries & berries blend with strawberry, blueberry, or cherry gelatin.

Red, White, and Blueberry Pretzel Salad: Use blueberry gelatin instead of the strawberry gelatin and the sliced strawberries. If you’re searching for a patriotic theme, check out our collection of red, white, and blue cake recipes.

Summery Fruit and Pretzel Salad: Use 32 oz of thawed frozen summer fruit blend (containing fruits such as blackberries, peaches, and strawberries--cut the peach slices crosswise into 3 pieces each) with the strawberry gelatin.

Love strawberry desserts? Give one of these other scrumptious strawberry recipes a try:

Fluffy Strawberry Pie with Pretzel Crust All the flavors of the dessert squares, made into a pie.

Best Strawberry Shortcake Homemade shortcakes made with Bisquick™ mix, filled with sweetened fresh strawberries and billowy whipped cream.

Storing Strawberry Pretzel Salad

Strawberry Pretzel Salad is best served the day it is made, so that the pretzel crust is at its crunchiest best. As it sits longer, moisture from the cream cheese filling transfers to the pretzel crust, taking away the crunchiness and making it tough. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy leftovers! They are still ok to eat, but the crust just won’t be as enjoyable as when it is eaten fresh.

To store leftovers, wrap remaining pieces in the dish it was made in tightly with plastic wrap. Or place servings in an air-tight food safe storage container. Refrigerate up to 2 days.

Freezing this dessert is not recommended as the crust and layers will get watery during thawing.

Other Easy Dessert Recipes

Here are some other easy desserts for your holiday or summertime gatherings. Great for when your oven is full, or you don’t want to heat up the kitchen baking all day.

No-Bake Desserts

Golden Grahams s'mores are a sweet treat that is perfect for summer or any time you want a taste of summer.

No-bake french silk pie frees up your oven for other holiday dishes.

No-bake-caramel-Cinnamon-Toast-Crunch bars are every ingredient you'd want in a bar, coming together in a crazy good way. Watch them disappear quickly.

Make-Ahead Desserts

Caramel-Chex-scotcheroos are great whether tucked in a lunch box or brought to a potluck, these tasty bars will get oohs and aahs.

Chocolate-cherry-cheesecake is impressive enough for your holiday meal and it’s made ahead to take the pressure off of entertaining.

Tiramisu cake No one needs to know this restaurant-worthy cake was made easily with a cake mix. The flavors come alive when it gets a chance to hang out in the fridge before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Should I Dissolve the Jell-O?

Use the amount of water called for in the recipe (not on the box) for this layer to set up properly. Stir the gelatin into boiling water until it is completely dissolved. Be sure the water is boiling, not just hot, for the gelatin to dissolve properly.

How Long Does Each Layer Need to be Refrigerated?

We’ve worked out the correct order as well as all the timings of making the layers. Guaranteeing you’ll spend as little time in the kitchen making this dessert as possible!

The gelatin mixture is made first. Refrigerate for approximately 2 hours until partially set up. Don’t let it set any longer than that, or it will be impossible to spoon and spread into a nice, even layer.

Make the filling and refrigerate it while you’re waiting for the gelatin to get to the correct firmness.

Spread the partially set gelatin over the filling and refrigerate the dessert at least 4 hours but as much as 6 hours for it to firm up enough to cut beautifully shaped pieces.

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

  • Prep Time 20 min
  • Total 6 hr 40 min
  • Servings 12
  • Ingredients 9
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Ingredients

Topping

  • 2 packages (4-serving size each) Jell-O® strawberry-flavored gelatin
  • 2 cups boiling water
  • 2 containers (16 oz each) frozen sweetened sliced strawberries, thawed

Crust

  • 2 cups pretzels, crushed
  • 3/4 cup butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons sugar

Filling

  • 1 container (8 oz) Cool Whip frozen whipped topping, thawed
  • 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup sugar

Instructions

  • Step 
    1
    Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Stir in strawberries; refrigerate until partially set, about 1 hour 45 minutes.
  • Step 
    2
    Heat oven to 350° F. In medium bowl, mix Crust ingredients. Press into ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Bake 10 minutes. Cool on cooling rack.
  • Step 
    3
    In medium bowl, beat Filling ingredients with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Spread over cooled crust. Cover and refrigerate until cool and gelatin topping in bowl is partially set.
  • Step 
    4
    Carefully spoon gelatin topping over filling. Refrigerate 4 to 6 hours or until firm. To serve, cut into 4 rows by 3 rows.

Nutrition

480 Calories
22g Total Fat
4g Protein
66g Total Carbohydrate
53g Sugars

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 Serving
Calories
480
Calories from Fat
200
Total Fat
22g
34%
Saturated Fat
14g
70%
Trans Fat
1/2g
Cholesterol
50mg
17%
Sodium
360mg
15%
Potassium
130mg
4%
Total Carbohydrate
66g
22%
Dietary Fiber
2g
9%
Sugars
53g
Protein
4g
% Daily Value*:
Vitamin A
15%
15%
Vitamin C
25%
25%
Calcium
4%
4%
Iron
6%
6%
Exchanges:
1 Starch; 0 Fruit; 3 1/2 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Skim Milk; 0 Low-Fat Milk; 0 Milk; 0 Vegetable; 0 Very Lean Meat; 0 Lean Meat; 0 High-Fat Meat; 4 1/2 Fat;
Carbohydrate Choice
4 1/2
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

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