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This no bake Strawberry Pretzel Pie has a sweet & salty pretzel crust and a creamy strawberry jello cheesecake filling. It’s the perfect summertime dessert that is easy enough for anyone to make!
For another sweet & salty dessert with a pretzel crust be sure and try this Mandarin Orange Pretzel Salad.
Strawberry Pretzel Pie Recipe (No Bake Dessert)
I live for the summertime months when all the strawberries are juicy, ripe, and bright red! Strawberry desserts are always a favorite around my house.
This strawberry pretzel pie is a fun way to get that deliciously bright strawberry flavor, with strawberry jello, and then use up fresh strawberries for garnish.
You will love how cool, creamy, and fluffy soft this no bake pie is. A sweet and salty pretzel crust is filled with a creamy and smooth strawberry jello cheesecake filling that is sweetened with a can of sweetened condensed milk. You really can’t get any better than that combo!
Why You’ll Love It
- Easy to make no bake dessert! If you’re wanting to make a sweet treat that impresses, delicious, and looks like it took hours to make… then you need to make this no bake dessert. Tastes like a million bucks but it’s actually so simple!
- Fresh and bright strawberry flavor. The strawberry jello powder is an easy way to add lots of strawberry flavor and still keep the pie creamy and smooth. I love to garnish the top with fresh strawberries for a pretty presentation.
- Perfect make ahead recipe. Because the pie needs at least 8 hours of chill time in the fridge, it makes it the perfect recipe to make the day before. That way you’re not stressed the day of trying to get it made in time.
Ingredients Needed
- Pretzel Crust
- Mini Pretzels – The key is to crush these into very fine crumbs so the crust is easier to cut and eat.
- Light Brown Sugar – Sweetener for the crust. Provides the perfect sweet and salty balance to the pretzels.
- Melted Butter – It’s best to use unsalted butter in this recipe.
- Strawberry Jello Cheesecake Filling
- Cream Cheese – Make sure this is well softened (not warm at all) so that it mixes in smoothly, without any lumps, into the cheesecake mixture.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Strawberry Jello – We want just the powder inside the box. Do not prepare it beforehand.
- Cool Whip
How To Make a Strawberry Pretzel Pie with Strawberry Jello
- Grease a 9-inch springform pan with shortening or butter. Set aside.
- Combine the mini pretzels and brown sugar into a food processor and process at high speed until all the pretzels are in very fine crumbs. This will take several minutes to get them finely ground. With the processor on low speed, gradually add the melted butter and mix it until it’s combined and everything starts clumping together.
- Press the crumbs firmly into the prepared springform pan and freeze for 20 minutes.
- Beat the cream cheese in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until it’s smooth and no lumps remain. Mix in the sweetened condensed milk until combined.
- Add the strawberry jello powder and mix until it’s well combined.
- Stir in the Cool Whip until evenly combined and incorporated.
- Pour the filling into the springform pan on top of the pretzel crust.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
- When ready to serve, garnish with whipped cream (homemade or use additional Cool Whip) and fresh strawberries and/or crushed pretzel crumbs.
It’s much easier to beat cream cheese when it’s softened. Place the cream cheese out at room temperature no more than 2 hours before using it. When cream cheese is softened it mixes in more smoothly without any lumps.
FAQ’s + Expert Tips
- Strawberry Jello : We just want a small box for this recipe. Do not prepare it before adding it into the mixing bowl. Just dump in the dry powder from the box.
- Pretzels : It’s easier to use mini pretzels, rather than pretzel sticks, because the mini pretzels fit into the food processor much better. The key to a really good pretzel crust is to make sure that the pretzels are ground into really fine crumbs/pieces.
- Butter : Salted butter can be used in the crust but it might make the crust a little too salty, as pretzels are already heavily salted. But if you want more of that sweet & salty flavor then use salted butter.
Use any flavor of Jello that you want! My family also loves this pie using raspberry jello + fresh raspberry garnish. Any small box of Jello will work perfectly in this recipe – just garnish the pie with the matching fruit.
Strawberry Pretzel Pie
This no bake Strawberry Pretzel Pie has a sweet & salty pretzel crust and a creamy strawberry jello cheesecake filling. It's the perfect summertime dessert that is easy enough for anyone to make!
Ingredients
Pretzel Crust
- 4 cups mini pretzels
- 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
Strawberry Jello Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
- 1 box (3 oz) strawberry jello
- 8 ounces Cool Whip thawed
Garnishes
- Cool Whip OR homemade whipped cream
- fresh strawberries
- crushed pretzels
Instructions
Make The Pretzel Crust
- Grease a 9-inch springform pan with shortening or butter. Set aside.
- Combine the mini pretzels and brown sugar into a food processor and process at high speed until all the pretzels are in very fine crumbs. This will take several minutes to get them finely ground.4 cups mini pretzels, 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- With the processor on low speed, gradually add the melted butter and mix it until it's combined and everything starts clumping together.12 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Press the crumbs firmly into the prepared springform pan and freeze for 20 minutes.
Make The Strawberry Jello Filling
- Beat the cream cheese in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until it's smooth and no lumps remain.8 ounces cream cheese
- Add in the sweetened condensed milk and mix until combined.1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
- Add the strawberry jello powder and mix until it's well combined.1 box (3 oz) strawberry jello
- Stir in the Cool Whip until evenly combined and incorporated.8 ounces Cool Whip
- Pour the filling into the springform pan on top of the pretzel crust. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or overnight is even better.
Serving
- Add a layer of Cool Whip or homemade whipped cream on top of the pie. Garnish with chopped or halved strawberries and/or crushed pretzels. * Homemade Whipped Cream : Beat 1 cup of heavy whipping cream + 1/4 cup powdered sugar in a mixing bowl until stiff peaks form. Start at low speed and gradually increase speed as needed. This takes about 4-5 minutes.
Video
Notes
Butter : I prefer unsalted butter because the pretzels are already pretty salty on their own. If you want even more of the sweet & salty flavor then go ahead and use salted butter. Either one will work, it just depends on your preference.
12 tablespoons butter is equal to 1 1/2 sticks of butter.
What If I Don’t Have a Food Processor? : If you don’t have one of these then there are several options. Use a food chopper to finely pulse the pretzels into fine crumbs. Pour them into a mixing bowl along with the brown sugar and melted butter. Stir with a fork until combined well.
You can also place the pretzels in a Ziploc bag and use a rolling pin or meat pounder to crush them finely. Add them into a mixing bowl along with the brown sugar and melted butter. Mix until combined.
Nutrition
Calories: 537kcal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 76mg | Sodium: 578mg | Potassium: 285mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 39g | Vitamin A: 870IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 177mg | Iron: 2mg
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