Is it just me or did EVERYONE grow up eating that strawberry jello pretzel salad?! I've asked plenty of people and they said they remember it! Maybe its a midwest thing...but its pretty nostalgic for a lot of us! So I thought it needed an update. I recently snagged the newest flavor of Nutsola, Cherry Max and I immediately knew it needed to be the crust for this cherry pretzel dessert! So here is my Cherry Pretzel Tart dessert.
So what is Nutsola? You be wondering right about now. Its a gluten free, grain free superfood mix that is perfect for protein balls, home made bars, and MORE! I actually have another recipe Edible Cookie Dough using this mix. So versatile and good for you! My toddler loves to eat it on her yogurt.
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Traditional Strawberry Pretzel Salad
So this dish usually has pretzel crust, cream cheese layer, and strawberry jello topper. I'm swapping this pretzel crust for my Cherry Max Nutsola mix and stirring in a few pretzels to balance the sweetness!
Instead of cream cheese I'm using an instant cheesecake! Its a little bit more rich but it sets up nicely. You could totally still use cream cheese for this layer.
Lastly, since the crust has cherry in it, the jello dessert top is cherry flavored. I'm also topping this with some sliced cherries for decoration.
How TO make Cherry Pretzel Tart
- First you will form the Nutsola bars. You do this by combining your bag of superfood mix with a couple tablespoons of water. This is when I also mix in the crushed pretzels!
- Bake at 250 for 45 minutes to create the bars.
- Whip up the instant cheesecake packet according to the box and pour over the cooled bars. Refrigerate this for 1 hour.
- Next prepare the jello and pour over the cheesecake layer. Carefully! My tart shell completely failed me the first time so maybe have a baking tray underneath to catch any overflow
- Refrigerate for another hour and dust with powdered sugar!
So this is my updated version of the strawberry pretzel jello salad using Nutsola Cherry Max as the tart crust!
FAQ
Can I use a regular dish instead of a tart pan? YES! The tart pan is just for looks, it would totally function well in a regular 9x9 dish.
What if I don't have Nutsola? Pulse your pretzels with dried cherries and dates to form the crust.
If I can't find instant cheesecake, what do I use? It is totally fine to use softened cream cheese in place of the instant cheesecake.
Cherry Pretzel Tart
Equipment
- baking dish or tart pan
- mixing bowls
Ingredients
- 1 bag Nutsola cherry max could sub in 5 dates, 1/2 cup dried cherries, 2 cups pretzels
- 1/2 package instant cheesecake prepared according to package
- 1 pack cherry jello
- 1/2 cup cherries for garnish
- 1 cup pretzels crushed
Instructions
- prepare the nutsola according to the package and press into baking dish. OR pulse your dried cherries, dates, and pretzels until fine. Mix with 2 tablespoons water and press into dish.
- Bake at 275 for 45
- Top the cooled tart shell with the cheesecake mix.
- Refrigerate 1 hour
- Prepare jello according to package and carefully pour over tart.
- freeze 1 hour. Serve!
