Pretzel Salad- Love It or Hate It?

I am sure I may have mentioned that I am not from the South. 

(I don't know for sure, but this recipe seems Southern to me.)

But,

I have been to a few church potlucks in my time. 

In all my socializing at church suppers I never once came across this Jell O salad. 

The first time I had it was at a family gathering. 

Granny Vi's sister Claudine made it for us.   

This darling little lady started coming to family lunch when she moved to Dallas. 

She brought what has become one of my favorite desserts. 

It is called Pretzel Salad but I really think it should be called something else. 

Like Layered Jell O, Pretzel, Cream Cheese Wonderfulness.

I knew that I had to have the recipe. I love anything with cream cheese.
Warning this dessert is completely processed.

Pretzel Salad

Layer 1 

2 cups broken pretzels

1/4 cup sugar

1 stick of melted butter

Toss sugar and pretzel pieces together and put in a 13x9 greased pan. 

Pour melted butter over the top and bake @ 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes until brown. 

Cool

I did half of our pan with gluten free pretzels.

They were yummy.

Layer 2

 8 ounce cream cheese

8 ounce whipped topping. 

1 cup confectioners sugar

Mix together and spread over the cooled pretzel layer.

Make sure to get the cream cheese mixture all the way to the edges of the pan. 

Don't allow any pretzels to poke through the cream cheese. 
The cream cheese provides a leak proof barrier.  

Layer 3

2 boxes 3 ounce strawberry Jell O

2 10 ounce frozen strawberries in syrup (not the whole strawberries) 

2 cups boiling water

Mix water and Jell O and stir

Add slushy strawberries once Jell O is dissolved.

Pour over cream cheese layer and cool.

If the Jell O mixture leaks into the pretzels they will get soggy. 

Rebekah and I crazy about this dessert.

It is sweet and salty and tangy all at the same time. 

 I don't know if this is a Southern recipe or not but I had never heard of it before. 

I love it so much that if I were to encounter it at a potluck, I  might have to employ one of my favorite mottos-

"Life is short, eat dessert first."

But...it is called a salad.  

hmmm

Either way I am sure I would feel that potluck anxiety.

Do you know what I am talking about?

That fear that your favorite potluck staple with be gone by the time you get to that spot down the line. 

Have you felt it too or is it just me?

I am completely aware that there seems to be a love/hate relationship with this concoction on the internet.

Really I don't care. I think the reviews are mixed in my household as well. I made it for Bekah and I for our

birthday-Mother's Day celebration so I didn't think it mattered if the guys were completely on board with it. :) 

Sprinkled with pretzels,

Katie