Strawberry Pretzel Salad

I need to start this off by saying that I don't understand why this is considered a "salad". It doesn't have any of the properties of a salad. It is 100% dessert.

The basis of this recipe is from one on allrecipes.com. One of the reviewers rated it as one star because it was so unhealthy. For serious? She even admits in the review that it's delicious! I need to point out that the original version of this about the same health level as many other desserts that involve a buttery crust with cheesy filling. Cheesecake comes to mind. Well, my version is for her. I used low fat cream cheese, fat free cool whip, and sugar free jello. I wouldn't say that it's healthy, but it has fewer calories than the original recipe.



Strawberry Pretzel Salad

Ingredients

2 cups crushed pretzels
3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 blocks reduced fat cream cheese
1 tub fat free whipped topping thawed
1 box sugar-free strawberry jello

2 cups thinly sliced fresh strawberries

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Mix crushed pretzels with melted butter and press into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Cool completely.

Mix together the sugar and cream cheese. Fold in the whipped topping. Spread over the crushed pretzel crust and put in the fridge to set. Meanwhile, make the jello according to the package directions. Mix in the sliced strawberries and put in the fridge until the cream cheese layer is set (about half an hour). Spread the jello and strawberry mixture over the cream cheese layer and return to the fridge until the jello has completely set. Slice and serve.

I found that I needed a fairly sharp knife to cut through the crust. This is pretty delicious with a nice variety of flavors and textures. I'm still not convinced that it's really a salad and fully intend on coming up with a new/better name. Suggestions welcome.