Gluten Free Pretzel Salad

I never heard of Pretzel Salad until I moved to PA. I received a recipe for this when I moved here and couldn't understand how this could be a dessert when you use pretzels!!! Well, when I tried it for the first time, I couldn't believe how delicious it was and now I love making it in the summer. Of course, the recipe is not originally Gluten Free, but I made it that way just this passed weekend. I'm trying to avoid gluten or wheat products. Anything that is made with wheat which is pretty much everything we eat!!! But thank goodness, gluten free has come a long way. I have health problems, which I think many of us who live in this country do, thanks to our diets. So, I noticed when I avoid wheat products I feel so much better. I don't have celiacs disease or anything like that, but I do think I have an intolerance for gluten products. So anyways, I try to tweak recipes. Thanks to the internet, there are a ton of gluten free recipes out there.
So for those of you who are new to this gluten free way of living, I thought I'd post a recipe for you. A dessert at that....yum.

I got this particular recipe from Kraft Foods Magazine.




You'll need 2 Cups of finely crushed pretzels (gluten free pretzels). The Wylde brand I have pictured is really good. I can't taste the difference. I used a food processor. First I started out with the pretzels in a ziploc bag and was smashing them, great way to get out any frustrations, but it was taking too long so the food processor did a great job.

2 Cups of finely crushed pretzels
1/4 cup of sugar (I used raw sugar, personal preference)
2/3 cup of butter or margarine melted.
Heat oven to 350. Mix pretzels crumbs, sugar and butter, then press onto the bottom of a 13x9 baking pan.
(I cover my fingers with plastic wrap and push down the crumb mixture, that seems to work well)
Bake for 10 minutes, remove from oven and let cool.




Cream Cheese Mixture:
1 1/2 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup of sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1 cup of thawed cool whip
Beat cream cheese, sugar and milk til blended. Stir in cool whip. Spread over crust and refrigerate.
Now, it will seem like you do not have enough of this to spread across the crust, but you will. It takes patience to carefully spread this. Although, next time, I will double this part of the recipe. I like a little more cream cheese filling.


2 cups of boiling water
1 package (6 oz.) Jello strawberry gelatin
1 1/2 cups of cold water
1 qt. or 4 cups of fresh sliced strawberries
Add boiling water to gelatin mix in large bowl, stir 2 minutes until completely dissolved. Stir in cold water. Refrigerate 1 1/2 hours or until thickend. Stir in strawberries, spoon over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm.
I made this the night before just to make sure it would set. Be sure there are not gaps between cream cheese layer and sides of pan. You don't want the jello to get in there and get the crust soggy.


Well, I hope you enjoy this. It is delicious. There are several steps to it, but I think its worth it. My niece loved this dessert. And I didn't tell anyone it was gluten free until after they ate it, and they could not believe it. Everyone one of them had more the next evening. I wish my final picture looked as pretty as the magazine shows, but hey, I'm not a professional, but I am a professional eater...lol