Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Pretzel Salad- Love It or Hate It?

I am sure I may have mentioned that I am not from the South. 
(I don't know for sure, but this recipe seems Southern to me.)
But,
I have been to a few church potlucks in my time. 
In all my socializing at church suppers I never once came across this Jell O salad. 
The first time I had it was at a family gathering. 
Granny Vi's sister Claudine made it for us.   
This darling little lady started coming to family lunch when she moved to Dallas. 
She brought what has become one of my favorite desserts. 
It is called Pretzel Salad but I really think it should be called something else. 
Like Layered Jell O, Pretzel, Cream Cheese Wonderfulness.
I knew that I had to have the recipe. I love anything with cream cheese.
Warning this dessert is completely processed.

Pretzel Salad

Layer 1 
2 cups broken pretzels
1/4 cup sugar
1 stick of melted butter
Toss sugar and pretzel pieces together and put in a 13x9 greased pan. 
Pour melted butter over the top and bake @ 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes until brown. 
Cool


I did half of our pan with gluten free pretzels.
They were yummy.

Layer 2
 8 ounce cream cheese
8 ounce whipped topping. 
1 cup confectioners sugar
Mix together and spread over the cooled pretzel layer.
Make sure to get the cream cheese mixture all the way to the edges of the pan. 
Don't allow any pretzels to poke through the cream cheese. 
The cream cheese provides a leak proof barrier.  

Layer 3
2 boxes 3 ounce strawberry Jell O
2 10 ounce frozen strawberries in syrup (not the whole strawberries) 
2 cups boiling water
Mix water and Jell O and stir
Add slushy strawberries once Jell O is dissolved.
Pour over cream cheese layer and cool.

If the Jell O mixture leaks into the pretzels they will get soggy. 
Rebekah and I crazy about this dessert.
It is sweet and salty and tangy all at the same time. 
 I don't know if this is a Southern recipe or not but I had never heard of it before. 
I love it so much that if I were to encounter it at a potluck, I  might have to employ one of my favorite mottos-
"Life is short, eat dessert first."
But...it is called a salad.  
hmmm
Either way I am sure I would feel that potluck anxiety.
Do you know what I am talking about?
That fear that your favorite potluck staple with be gone by the time you get to that spot down the line. 
Have you felt it too or is it just me?
I am completely aware that there seems to be a love/hate relationship with this concoction on the internet.
Really I don't care. I think the reviews are mixed in my household as well. I made it for Bekah and I for our
birthday-Mother's Day celebration so I didn't think it mattered if the guys were completely on board with it. :) 

Katie 

10 comments :

  1. Hi Katie...looks like the two ahead are spammers... you can just delete them. :)
    Now, about this salad...I'm not sure how I feel about it. I can honestly say I've never had it! I'm going to pin this recipe though, because I think it might be delicious and The Honey might enjoy it!
    He like millionaire pie...and it is similar. but not really...
    I'm going to try it and I'll let you know what I think about it.

    Pat

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    1. The spammers have gotten worse lately. Arg! Let me know what you think. :)

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  2. I've never heard of pretzel salad before, so I was expecting something with greens, which did not sound appealing to me. Your recipe, however, does sound yummy! It's definitely something my son would love. I wonder how it got the moniker of "salad?"

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    1. It didn't sound yummy to me either until I saw it and heard it had cream cheese. :)

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  3. I'm from PA, and this was a staple at all summer picnics and barbecues when I was growing up. I love it! Maybe I'll make it over Memorial Day. It would be interesting to see what my kids think of it.

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    1. Hmm. I'm from N.Y. and had never had it until I moved down South. I guess it isn't Southern. Thanks for the info. I think it is yummy.

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  4. I love it! I make strawberry pretzel salad a good bit when I'm asked to bring something to a gathering. I found my recipe from Paula Deen's Magazine. I think it is a southern type of food. It's a winner in my book!

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    1. Thanks, Kelly. I had to get my original recipe from Claudine. It wasn't in any of my cookbooks Southern or otherwise.
      I got the tip about the cream cheese layer years ago from the internet.

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  5. This is a recipe I am familiar with, I love it! I have a similar recipe that uses pineapple but no gelatin. It is good too. Congealed salads are a part of every get together down here, always look forward to the favorites and trying something new!

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    1. Thanks, Melanie. They are cool and refreshing.

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