By Jack's garden operation grows more ambitious every year. The greenhouse, the market sales, the Farm Fund jar that now holds over three hundred dollars. He's 13 and he farms the way some kids play video games — obsessively, joyfully, with the deep understanding that this is not a hobby but a vocation wearing a hobby's clothes.
Thursday was tater tot hotdish, because Thursday is always tater tot hotdish and the schedule doesn't change for anything — not pandemics, not loss, not the passage of years. The tater tots go in at 375 and come out golden and the family eats them and the eating is the Thursday and the Thursday is the structure and the structure holds. But I also made spring risotto with peas earlier this week, because the kitchen doesn't only look backward. The kitchen grows.
The garden is waking up. The garlic that overwintered is pushing green shoots through the soil, the annual proof that buried things come back. Jack's seedlings are hardening off in the greenhouse. The Marlene cherry tomato — generation 6 now — ready for transplanting. Every spring the planting is the memorial. Every spring the name goes back in the ground.
With the Marlene cherry tomato going back into the ground for its sixth generation, cherries were already on my mind — the word, the color, the stubborn annual act of planting something in memory of someone. I didn’t want to overthink dessert that week; I wanted something that gave the table a little brightness without asking too much of me. This Cherry Pretzel Dessert has been in my back pocket for years — the salty crunch of the crust, the cool cream in the middle, the glossy cherry layer on top — and it always feels like exactly the right thing when spring is trying to say something hopeful.
Cherry Pretzel Dessert
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 4 hours (includes chilling) | Servings: 12
Ingredients
- Pretzel Crust:
- 2 cups finely crushed pretzels
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- Cream Cheese Layer:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 8 oz frozen whipped topping (such as Cool Whip), thawed
- Cherry Topping:
- 1 package (6 oz) cherry-flavored gelatin
- 2 cups boiling water
- 1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.
- Make the pretzel crust. In a medium bowl, stir together the crushed pretzels, melted butter, and 3 tablespoons sugar until evenly combined. Press the mixture firmly and evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Bake the crust. Bake for 10 minutes, until just set and lightly golden. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before adding the next layer — this step is important to keep the layers from bleeding together.
- Make the cream cheese layer. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the softened cream cheese and 1 cup sugar together on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gently fold in the thawed whipped topping until fully combined. Spread this mixture evenly over the cooled pretzel crust, making sure to seal all the way to the edges of the dish to prevent the gelatin from seeping through.
- Prepare the cherry topping. In a large bowl or measuring cup, dissolve the cherry gelatin in 2 cups of boiling water, stirring for about 2 minutes until completely dissolved. Stir in the cherry pie filling. Let the mixture cool at room temperature for 15–20 minutes, until it is no longer steaming but not yet set.
- Add the topping and chill. Carefully spoon the cherry gelatin mixture over the cream cheese layer, spreading gently and evenly. Refrigerate the dessert for at least 3 hours, or until the gelatin topping is fully set.
- Slice and serve. Cut into squares and serve cold directly from the baking dish. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 375 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Carbs: 51g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 370mg