Pretzel & Strawberry Chocolate Fluff Pie

I decided to try this after seeing it on Food Network with Sunny Anderson. She always puts such an interesting twist on everything she makes. I did change the name, though. She called it "jiggle fluff pie" and I just don't think its appetizing to have the word "jiggle" in the title of your dessert, you know?

 I have heard of other versions of this, often called "pretzel salad". I have to say there is a whole lot going on in this one dish so I can't really call it simple. I'll be honest, my hubby didn't care for it but I thought it was good. It would be an ideal dish to take to a get-together and a HUGE hit with kids. A few thoughts I had...you could omit the cocoa powder and not have the chocolate flavor, as well as cutting back on the butter in the pretzel mixture. I thought it was too much.

What You Need:
2 cups salted pretzels, lightly broken
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
7 tablespoons granulated sugar
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
4 cups heavy cream, chilled, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Salt
2 cups pineapple juice
1 (6-ounce) box strawberry-flavored powdered gelatin mix
2 cups frozen chopped strawberries, thawed
1-ounce piece semisweet chocolate bar, for shaving

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a 13 by 9-inch pan, add the pretzels, butter, and 2 tablespoons sugar. Stir to combine. Press mixture into the bottom of the pan and bake 8 to 10 minutes. Mine needed longer but you can check after 10. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

Add the pineapple juice to a small pot over medium-high heat, and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat, add the gelatin powder and stir to dissolve. Add the strawberries and let mixture come to room temperature or quick chill it over a bowl filled with ice water while whisking.

In a stand mixer or a medium bowl, add the cream cheese, 2 tablespoons sugar, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and beat until well blended. In a clean bowl, combine 2 cups of the heavy cream, vanilla, 1 tablespoon sugar, and a pinch of salt and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into cream cheese mixture and spread it evenly over the cooled pretzel crust. Pour the gelatin mixture over cream cheese layer and refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.

Whip the remaining 2 cups of heavy cream with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. When the strawberry gelatin layer is set, smooth the whipped cream over the top and sprinkle evenly with chocolate shavings. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. Enjoy!