Strawberry Cream Cheese Pretzel Pie

The most delicious strawberry cream cheese pretzel pie, with a buttery, graham cracker pretzel crust, cream cheese filling, fresh strawberry compote, and lightly sweetened whipped cream. This strawberry pie is the perfect dessert for a warm summer day.

Looking for more strawberry recipes? You’ll love my strawberry orange creamsicles, roasted strawberry ice cream, chewy brown butter strawberry cookies, and strawberry crumb bars.

This site contains affiliate links.  As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  This means that I may make a small commission if you purchase a product using those links.  This in no way affects my opinion of those products and services.  All opinions expressed on this site are my own.

Why You’ll Love This Pie

Salty Sweet Crunchy Creamy. I took inspiration for my strawberry pretzel pie from the classic layered dessert known as strawberry pretzel salad. I LOVED that dessert when I was a kid, with its salty sweet flavors, crunchy pretzel crust, and layers of fluffy whipped cream cheese and sweet strawberry jello. My strawberry pretzel pie combines all the salty-sweet-crunchy-creamy goodness of that recipe into a more grown up pie (sans jello) that my husband said was “the BEST strawberry pie I’ve EVER eaten”!

Easy to Make. The pretzel crust comes together quickly and bakes in a few minutes. Then you simply need to fill the crust with no bake cream cheese filling, fresh strawberry compote, and whipped cream.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.

Ingredients

Crust

• Graham Crackers + Pretzels. For the base of the crust, I used a blend of crushed graham crackers and pretzels for great texture and a combination of sweet, salty nutty flavors.
• Sugar. I used light brown sugar to sweeten the crust, but you can also use white granulated sugar.
• Salt. A little extra coarse Kosher salt balances the sweetness and brings out more flavor in the crust.
• Butter. Unsalted melted butter binds the crust together and adds buttery flavor.

Cream Cheese Filling

• Cream Cheese. You’ll need bricks or blocks or cream cheese, not a tub of whipped cream cheese.
• Powdered Sugar. Sweetens the filling.
• Vanilla Bean Paste. Flavor.
• Sour Cream + Heavy Whipping Cream. Smooths out the filling, adding richness and lightness.

Strawberry Compote

• Strawberries. You’ll need fresh strawberries to make the strawberry compote, as well as to decorate the top of the pie. You’ll be simmering the strawberries first, to reduce them down into a syrupy compote.
• Granulated Sugar. Adds a touch of sweetness to the strawberries and draws out their moisture.

Whipped Cream

• Heavy Whipping Cream. You need the high fat content for whipped cream, for a thick, fluffy consistency.
• Powdered Sugar. Sweetens and stabilizes the cream.
• Vanilla Extract. Flavor.

Instructions

Pretzel Crust

• Preheat the oven to 325 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven.
• In a bowl, combine the crushed graham crackers, pretzels, brown sugar and salt. Drizzle with the melted butter, and stir until moistened and crumbly. Press the crumbs evenly and firmly against the bottom and up the sides of your tart or pie pan.
• Bake the crust for about 10-12 minutes, just until it smells toasty. Let cool completely.

Cream Cheese Filling

• Use an electric mixer (stand or hand held) to beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth with no lumps. Beat in the sour cream, then beat in the cold heavy whipping cream until smooth and thick.
• Spread the cream cheese filling into the cooled crust. Refrigerate for about 1 1/2 – 2 hours.

Strawberry Compote

• Wash and hull the strawberries, then reserve 1/4 lb for decorating the pie later. Roughly chop 3/4 lb of strawberries.
• In a saucepan, combine the chopped strawberries with the sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Continue to cook the strawberries to let the excess water boil away, stirring frequently.
• When the strawberries start to get a little thicker and more syrupy, reduce the heat to medium low, and stir more frequently so they don’t scorch. Reduce the strawberries to 1 cup. It might take about 20-30 minutes to reduce the strawberries.

• Refrigerate the strawberry compote until completely chilled. You can make the compote up to 2 days in advance, keeping it covered and refrigerated until needed.
• Once chilled, spread the strawberry compote over the cream cheese filling. Slice the remaining strawberries, and arrange them over the top.

Whipped Cream

• With an electric mixer, whip the cold heavy whipping cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla until thick, fluffy peaks form that hold their shape.
• Decorate the edge of the pie with the whipped cream. You can use two spoons to cut whipped cream quenelles (as pictured) or fill a piping bag, fit it with tip 1M, and pipe swirls around the pie.
• Serve the pie immediately.

Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of pretzels should I use?

Any kind of hard pretzels, such as sticks or twists.

Will frozen strawberries work in this recipe?

You can use frozen strawberries for the compote, but you’ll need fresh sliced strawberries for decorating the top of the pie.

How long does this pie stay fresh?

This is one of those pies that’s best made and eaten in the same day. You can cover the leftover pie with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for up to 2 days, but as it sits, the crust can soften up a bit.

Can I make strawberry pretzel pie a day ahead of time?

You can make the strawberry compote in advance, but for everything else, you should make and assemble the pie the same day it’s going to be served.

You Might Also Like

Favorite Products

Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!