Strawberry Pretzel Dessert / Salad

Why they would name this as a Salad, i will never understand... because this actually fits very well in the dessert category. I was quite intrigued by this dish and the combination of ingredients that go into this recipe when my cousin P (akka) told me about it... I got a chance to make this for my son's birthday party (he just turned two) and since there was already cake on the menu, I thought that this would make for a nice dessert. It went over very well with the guests. Another good thing is that it can be made the previous day so one less thing to worry about on the day of the party! :)

The party's menu included chocolate cake, onion pakoras, vegetable vellai kurma, paneer jalfrezie, yummy chole that my neighbours helped make (will try and post that recipe soon), peas pulao, naan & curd rice besides this dessert.

STRAWBERRY PRETZEL SALAD / DELIGHT


Ingredients:

Prezel Layer: Powdered Pretzels - 2 cups ( I used this)
Sugar - 3 tbsp
Butter - 3/4 cups (melted)

Cream Layer: Whipped topping - one 8 oz. tub or freshly whipped cream
Cream cheese (low fat should work) - 8 oz pack
Sugar - 3/4 cup to 1 cup (to taste)

Strawberry Jello Layer: Strawberry Jello powder - Two 3 oz packs
Boiling Water - 2 cups
Fresh Srawberries - 1 lb, washed, dried, hulled and sliced

Method: 1) For the pretzel layer, combine the powdered pretzels, melted butter and sugar in a bowl. Press into a 9x13 inch pan evenly. Bake this in a preheated oven at 400F for 8 minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely.

2) For the cream layer, beat cream cheese and sugar till blended then fold in the whipped cream carefully. Spread this layer on the pretzel layer uniformly making sure you go till the ends and covering the crust completely. Chill this for atleast 2 hours.

3) To the boiling water, add the 2 packs of strawberry jello and dissolve. Switch off the flame and allow to cook completely. Arrange the sliced strawberries on the cream layer. When jellow is completely cool and slightly thickened, pour over the sliced strawberries slowly.

4) Refrigerate this for atleast 6 to 8 hours or upto 2 days. When ready to serve, slice (a serrated knife works best) and dig in.