Name: Recipe for Strawberry Pretzel Salad
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 145 min
Ingredients: 2½ cups crushed pretzels; 1½ cups sugar, (divided in half); ¾ cup butter, melted; 12 ounces cream cheese; 2 teaspoons vanilla; 12 ounces Cool Whip; 6 ounces strawberry gelatin ((2 packages)); 2 cups boiling water; 2 cups cold water; 3 to 4 cups fresh strawberries, (sliced)

a close up shot of Strawberry Pretzel Jello Dessert Salad on plate with a bite taken out of it

A simple pretzel crust is topped with a sweetened cream cheese and Cool Whip middle layer and then finished off with a strawberry jello layer for this delicious dish.

Jump to Recipe

Prep Time15

Cook Time10

Total Time2 25

Servings

Sweet. Salty. Creamy. Crunchy. This Strawberry Pretzel Salad hits every note. If you’ve never had this iconic American dessert, imagine a no-bake cheesecake meets a fruit-topped jello, all resting on a buttery, salty pretzel crust. It’s retro. It’s ridiculous. And it totally works. This is one old fashioned dessert that is absolutely delicious.

a slice of Strawberry Pretzel Salad on plate with a bite taken out of it

🎉 Despite the name, there’s no lettuce in sight. Just a gloriously layered dessert that looks impressive but doesn’t require any fancy tricks—which is a lifesaver if you’re juggling a busy schedule or holiday chaos. 🎉

What Goes Into Strawberry Pretzel Jello

strawberry pretzel salad raw ingredients that are labeled

Ingredients Overview

2½ cups crushed salted pretzels – Crushed, not pulverized—you want texture and crunch, not crumbs.
¾ cup melted butter
1½ cups sugar
12 oz cream cheese
12 oz Cool Whip – If you cannot get it, you can make your own homemade Cool Whip.
2 tsp vanilla
6 oz strawberry gelatin – Two 3-oz boxes
3 to 4 cups fresh strawberries
2 cups boiling water
2 cups cold water

How To Make This Strawberry Pretzel Salad

1. Make the crust:
Crush your pretzels (Ziploc bag + rolling pin = therapy session). Mix with sugar and melted butter, then press firmly into your pan. Bake it for 10 minutes and let it cool completely. This crust is salty, buttery, and holds together like a dream.

crushed pretzel pressed into the baking dish

⚠️ Don’t skip the crust bake. It’s the key to holding everything together. ⚠️

2. Beat the filling:
Cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla get beaten until smooth, then folded gently with Cool Whip. This middle layer is what keeps your crust crisp and your jello in its place—don’t skip smoothing it all the way to the edges!

cream cheese mixture spread on top of the pretzel crust

3. Make the jello topping:
Dissolve your strawberry gelatin in boiling water, stir in cold water, and add in the fresh strawberries. Chill until it’s thickened but not set—you want it pourable, not firm.

water added to the jello and stirred in a bowl

When making the jello, don’t leave it in the fridge for too long. If it sets too much, it will have chunks and won’t pour evenly.

4. Layer and chill:
Gently spoon or pour your jello over the cream cheese layer (start slow so it doesn’t sink). Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours until set.

strawberry jello poured over the top of the cream cheese mixture

How To Serve

Whether you’re making it for a holiday dinner, a family gathering, or just because jello desserts are having a comeback (they are!), this recipe brings the wow-factor with barely any effort.

Use a sharp knife to cut clean squares straight from the fridge—this dessert holds its shape beautifully when cold. A small offset spatula or pie server works wonders for getting those tidy layers out in one swoop.

It’s perfect just as it is, but if you want to take it up a notch, try adding a dollop of whipped cream. For a pretty presentation, top each slice with an extra strawberry slice, a pretzel or a little mint leaf.

a close up shot of Strawberry Pretzel Jello Dessert Salad in a baking dish with a spatula picking up a piece of the dessert salad

How To Store A Jello Pretzel Salad

Strawberry pretzel salad is best made no more than a day in advance—you don’t want the crust to start to soften.

Store leftovers covered in the fridge for two to three days. but fair warning, people tend to go back for seconds and thirds. So you might not have any.

⚠️ Don’t freeze it—jello turns watery, strawberries go mushy, and the pretzels lose their crunch. Not worth it. ⚠️

More Pretzel Crust Desserts

Strawberry Pretzel Salad is nostalgic, no-fuss, and ridiculously good. The salty-sweet combo keeps it from being overly sugary, and the fresh strawberries balance everything out. But a pretzel jello salad doesn’t have to be strawberry flavor, here are some additional fun options:

Recipe for Strawberry Pretzel Salad

5 from 10 votes

A simple pretzel crust is topped with a sweetened cream cheese and Cool Whip middle layer and then finished off with a strawberry jello layer for this delicious dish.

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 10

Total Time 2 25

Servings

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Ingredients

2½ cups crushed pretzels (You’ll need five cups of whole pretzels. After you crush them, you’ll have about two and a half cups.)
1½ cups sugar, divided in half
¾ cup butter, melted
12 ounces cream cheese
2 teaspoons vanilla
12 ounces Cool Whip
6 ounces strawberry gelatin (2 packages)
2 cups boiling water
2 cups cold water
3 to 4 cups fresh strawberries, sliced

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly butter the bottom of a 9×13-inch pan.
In a medium bowl, combine crushed pretzels, ¾ cup sugar, and melted butter. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan. (You can crush pretzels by putting them in a Ziploc bag and using a rolling pin, wooden spoon, or your hands to crush them.)
Bake the pretzel base for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, the remaining ¾ cup of sugar, and the vanilla until well combined. Next, carefully fold in the Cool Whip.
Spread the cream cheese mixture on top of the pretzel crust. When adding the cream cheese mixture to the pan, make sure that it goes all the way to the edges. This creates a barrier to prevent the jello from seeping down into the pretzel base and making it soggy.
In a medium bowl, dissolve the jello in two cups of boiling water. Once it is completely dissolved, add two cups of ice water and stir. Stir in the sliced strawberries. Refrigerate for 15 minutes or until the jello is just starting to thicken but has not yet set.
Carefully pour the strawberry jello over the cream cheese layer. Cover and refrigerate for two hours or until the jello is set. Slice into squares to serve.

Video

Notes

Be sure to crush the pretzels very well to make sure there aren’t any large pieces of pretzels. If you would like, you can use a food processor to crush them.
When making the jello, don’t leave it in the fridge for too long. If it sets too much, it will have chunks and won’t pour evenly. If you just can’t get enough of jello, you can add an extra 3-ounce box of gelatin and an extra two cups of water.
If the Cool Whip is your favorite ingredient in this dessert, you can add a little more on top of each serving.

Nutrition

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This recipe was developed, tested, cooked and photographed by the Spaceships Kitchen. From our dinner table to yours, we hope you think it's out of this world!

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Strawberry Pretzel Salad