Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Strawberry Delight

A layered dessert, made with a buttery shortbread crust, topped with a cream cheese and whipped topping layer, a layer of fresh or frozen strawberries and finished with more whipped cream and chopped nuts.

Strawberry Delight

I have a secret I've been keeping. In the midst of this recent wintery weather, which for some of you has meant snow, I have been chowing down on fresh, local strawberries. Louisiana strawberries. They show up this time of year, every year, and I sure do look forward to it.


I admit - after all the wonderful, traditional, but rich holiday foods, and the far more sweets than I ever usually eat otherwise, I really crave fresh salads and fresh fruits in January. I do! Luckily, I am a fan of citrus and right now is prime citrus season in Florida, as well as early crop strawberries too. While Florida has wonderful strawberries too, I favor the deliciously sweet, early crop strawberries from Louisiana the most.

Y'all know how much I love my layered desserts too, including the number one queen of them all of course! Made with a variety of crusts, usually layered with some kind of cream cheese filling and anything from layers of puddings to layers of fruit, and finished most often with a whipped topping, they are just a perfect dessert for parties, potlucks, church suppers and other gatherings.

Now... before I confuse anybody, over the years there have been a few desserts known by the name "delight." One of the best known is often called Strawberry Pretzel Delight, a dessert that has a crust of crushed pretzels, topped with a similar cream cheese filling and finished with strawberry gelatin. I know it by the name Pretzel Salad, and though I'm sure that you've already seen it around and about plenty on food blogs, y'all know it'll show up right here too one day!  It is a southern classic.

This Strawberry Delight dessert is a little bit different from that recipe, and more closely related to those layered pudding desserts many of us are so fond of. Though there are lots of ways to lower the fat and calories - I'll leave that up to you to settle on. With fresh Louisiana and Florida strawberries available right now in the markets of the Deep South, this dessert is a perfect vehicle for using fresh strawberries, although it is more commonly made using frozen.

Keep in mind when using fresh strawberries that you should always taste the plain strawberry first before adding any sugar. Sweetness can vary according to time of season and where they are grown, and a quick taste will give you an idea of how much sugar you'll need to add.

Here's how to make this Strawberry Delight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. First things first, we'll macerate the strawberries. Slice them into a bowl and stir in 1/4 cup of granulated sugar; refrigerate until needed, giving them a stir once in awhile.

We start off with the typical shortbread type of crust made with butter, flour and nuts. I'm still on the fence as to whether I prefer the butter cold, softened or melted to produce the best crust. I went with softened here.


Mix that together, until it resembles a cookie dough.


Spread into the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch glass Pyrex baking dish.


Bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely, about an hour. The bottom of the pan should be completely cool to the touch before you attempt to layer in the remaining ingredients.


For the filling, cream together one 8-ounce block of cream cheese with 2 tablespoons of softened butter, then mix in 2 cups of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla until well blended.


Gently fold in 2 cups of the whipped topping. Doesn't that just look dreamy.


Spread mixture on the cooled crust.


Fully covering the crust.


Drain the strawberries well and using a slotted spoon, scatter them all over the top of the cream cheese, whipped topping filling. You can use thawed, frozen strawberries too - just note whether they are sweetened or un-sweetened and make adjustments as needed.


Top the strawberries with enough of the remaining whipped cream to cover - yes, add extra if you like!


Sprinkle pecans on top, cover and refrigerate for a full 24 hours. Carry to a party or potluck so you have plenty of people to share it with!


Find more of my favorite layered desserts on Pinterest!



Strawberry Delight

Strawberry Delight

Yield: About 12 Servings
Author: Deep South Dish
Prep time: 30 MinInactive time: 24 HourTotal time: 24 H & 30 M
A layered dessert, made with a buttery shortbread crust, topped with a cream cheese and whipped topping layer, a layer of fresh or frozen strawberries and finished with more whipped cream and chopped nuts.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound fresh strawberries, sliced
  • 1/4 cup or more granulated sugar, to taste
For the Crust:
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup finely minced pecans
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
For the Filling and Topping:
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened at room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 large (16 ounce) Cool Whip, or equivalent Dream Whip or homemade whipped cream, divided
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

  1. Wash and taste strawberries. Combine the strawberries and enough sugar to sweeten; refrigerate until needed, giving them a stir once in awhile. Taste again for sweetness and adjust if needed.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
  3. In a bowl, mix together the flour, pecans and butter until mixture resembles cookie dough. Spread in bottom of a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely, about an hour.
  4. For the filling, cream together the cream cheese and butter, then mix in the powdered sugar and vanilla until well blended. Gently fold in 2 cups of the whipped topping and spread mixture on the cooled crust.
  5. Drain the strawberries well and using a slotted spoon, tap off any excess juices. Scatter the strawberries over the top of the cream cheese filling. 
  6. Top the strawberries with enough of the remaining whipped cream to cover. Sprinkle pecans on top, if using, cover and refrigerate for a full 24 hours before serving.

Notes:

Keep in mind when using fresh strawberries that you should always taste the plain strawberry first before adding any sugar. Sweetness can vary according to time of season and where they are grown, and a quick taste will give you an idea of how much sugar you'll need to add.

May substitute a large 16-ounce package of frozen sweetened strawberries, thawed and drained. May also use canned strawberry or cherry pie filling. Okay to substitute margarine, sugar free and lower fat products also, if desired. The original Strawberry Delight recipes generally used 1 envelope of Dream Whip, a handy shelf stable whipped topping product that is actually still available. Each envelope of Dream Whip when prepared makes about 2 cups in volume.

Make it No Bake: Line the bottom of the pan with Nilla wafers instead of the crust, or make a cookie crust using 2-3 cups of crushed Nilla wafers, cookies, or graham crackers in place of the flour. For sandwich cookies, reduce the butter to 1/2 stick (1/4 cup).

Canned Pie Filling, Cherry, Cream Cheese, Desserts, Layered Desserts, Pie, Southern Classics, Strawberries
Dessert
American
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @DeepSouthDish on instagram and hashtag it #deepsouthdish
Created using The Recipes Generator


Posted by on January 17, 2012
Images and Full Post Content including Recipe ©Deep South Dish. Recipes are offered for your own personal use only and while pinning and sharing links is welcomed and encouraged, please do not copy and paste to repost or republish elsewhere such as other Facebook pages, blogs, websites, or forums without explicit prior permission. All rights reserved.

Material Disclosure: Unless otherwise noted, you should assume that post links to the providers of goods and services mentioned, establish an affiliate relationship and/or other material connection and that I may be compensated when you purchase from a provider. You are never under any obligation to purchase anything when using my recipes and you should always perform due diligence before buying goods or services from anyone via the Internet or offline.
.

As an Amazon Associate, Deep South Dish earns from qualifying purchases. See full disclosure for details.




Hey Y’all! Welcome to some good ole, down home southern cooking. Pull up a chair, grab some iced tea, and 'sit a bit' as we say down south. If this is your first time visiting Deep South Dish, you can sign up for FREE updates via EMAIL or you can catch up with us on Facebook and Twitter too!

Articles on this website are protected by copyright. You are free to print and sharing via Facebook share links and pinning with Pinterest are appreciated, welcomed and encouraged, but do not upload and repost photographs, or copy and paste post text or recipe text for republishing on Facebook, other websites, blogs, forums or other internet sites without explicit prior written approval.
Click for additional information.


© Copyright 2008-2024 – Mary Foreman – Deep South Dish LLC - All Rights Reserved

Material Disclosure: This site is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Unless otherwise noted, you should assume that post links to the providers of goods and services mentioned, establish an affiliate relationship and/or other material connection and that I may be compensated when you purchase from the provider. You are never under any obligation to purchase anything when using my recipes and you should always perform due diligence before buying goods or services from anyone via the Internet or offline.

DISCLAIMER: This is a recipe site intended for entertainment. By using this site and these recipes you agree that you do so at your own risk, that you are completely responsible for any liability associated with the use of any recipes obtained from this site, and that you fully and completely release Mary Foreman and Deep South Dish LLC and all parties associated with either entity, from any liability whatsoever from your use of this site and these recipes.

ALL CONTENT PROTECTED UNDER THE DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT. CONTENT THEFT, EITHER PRINT OR ELECTRONIC, IS A FEDERAL OFFENSE. Recipes may be printed ONLY for personal use and may not be transmitted, distributed, reposted, or published elsewhere, in print or by any electronic means. Seek explicit permission before using any content on this site, including partial excerpts, all of which require attribution linking back to specific posts on this site. I have, and will continue to act, on all violations.





Email Subscription DSD Feed