STRAWBERRY PRETZEL DESSERT | THE COUNTRY COOK

STRAWBERRY PRETZEL DESSERT | The Country Cook image

This Strawberry Pretzel Dessert is a classic and beloved dessert! Layers of crushed pretzels, sweetened cream cheese and strawberry pie filling make it a summertime must-make!

Provided by @MakeItYours

Number Of Ingredients 8

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups salted pretzels, crushed (divided use - two cups finely chopped, ½ cup coarsely broken up)
5 tbsp granulated sugar
3/4 cup salted butter, (melted)
8 ounce package cream cheese, (softened)
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract ((or vanilla extract))
16 ounces frozen whipped topping, (thawed and divided in half)
21 ounce can strawberry pie filling

Steps:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Prepare a 9"x9" baking dish by spraying it really well with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
Using a food processor, crush pretzels until you get 2 cups total of crushed pretzels. Alternatively, you can just put the pretzels in a ziptop bag and bang them with a rolling pin to crush them up. Whatever you have on hand.
Combine 2 cups of finely crushed pretzels with 5 tablespoons sugar and ¾ cup of melted butter.
Spread this pretzel crust into the baking dish and pack down firmly.
Bake the crust at 350F degrees for 10 minutes.
Whip the cream cheese until smooth and creamy.
Add the powdered sugar and continue to beat until very smooth.
Mix in almond extract.
Lastly fold in half the whipped topping. Put this cream mixture into the refrigerator to chill while waiting for the pretzel crust to cool.
When the crust comes out of the oven, allow it to cool completely. Take the cream cheese mixture out of the fridge and spread on top of the pretzel crust, all the way to the edges.
Spread strawberry pie filling on top of the whipped mixture layer.
Drop dollops of the remaining 8 ounces whipped topping all over the strawberry pie filling layer and spread gently to evenly cover. Chill overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup of broken pretzel pieces onto the dessert just before serving.
Use a large spoon to scoop out servings into a small bowl or with a knife and use a spatula to carefully lift each piece out if you want the layers to be perfectly displayed on a plate.