Strawberry Pretzel Dessert

This past weekend was a busy time for my sweet sister and her family.  Her 3rd child  (1st son) got married!!

I was very excited to be able to be a part of all the festivities since the wedding was here and not out west where Anna is from!  My sister asked me to make a strawberry pretzel dessert for the bridal luncheon held on Friday.  Years ago I used to make this dessert, but somehow over time, I lost the recipe and then just forgot about it.  I am so glad to have the recipe again!  My family loves this three-layer dessert. It is a great recipe to let children help with. Any child will love getting to crush pretzels with a rolling pin!  It makes a wonderful dessert to serve with your Easter dinner!

Bottom Layer:

2 cups crushed pretzels

1 stick butter

3/4 c. powdered sugar

Middle Layer:

12 oz whipped topping, softened (not frozen)

8 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature

3/4 c. powdered sugar

Top Layer:

6 oz strawberry gelatin

1 lb. container of fresh strawberries, rinsed and sliced

I put the pretzels in a zip-close plastic bag and used my marble rolling pin to coarsly crush them, continuing until I had 2 cups.  Melt butter and powdered sugar in the microwave. Mix with the pretzels and spread in a  sprayed 13×9 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes.  Cool.

In a large bowl, mix gelatin with 2 cups boiling water and stir to dissolve. Add sliced strawberries and chill.  Do not let it congeal completely!!  It just needs to be cooled.

While gelatin is cooling, blend cream cheese, whipped topping and powdered sugar until completely blended. When pretzel layer is cooled (room temp) spread the cream cheese layer over it making sure to seal the sides so that the gelatin doesn’t get underneath.

Gently pour gelatin over the top of the cream cheese mixture, using a spoon to arrange the strawberry slices.  Refrigerate until completely set. Cut into squares to serve.   If desired, add blackberries or blueberries to the strawberries!