A Community Cookbook, an Odd Recipe, and a Pretzel Salad by Ang Pompano — Plus a book givaway!

Ang Pompano: I love community cookbooks. We’ve all got them. You probably bought yours at a church fundraiser, a school bake sale, or maybe from a coworker’s kid who was raising money for a club.

I was looking through a few of them while working on a new writing project, and I realized these things don’t get nearly enough credit. We’re not talking about those glossy, $40 (or more) hardcover books with celebrity chefs on the cover. These are usually spiral bound, maybe even photocopied.

But what they lack in fancy photography, they make up for by being tried and true. These are the meals people actually cooked. If a recipe made it into the church cookbook, chances are someone served it, someone tasted it, and someone said, “You have to give me that recipe!”

It’s the personal touch that gets me. You don’t see a famous name at the top of the page; you see "Aunt Carmel," "Mrs. Robertson" who you know from down the street, or "Coach Shaw." I love the little notes, too. One might say "Great for snow days," or my favorite, "Bake until done."

These books are local history you can eat. If you find one from Key West, like the Key West Woman's Club Cookbook edited by our own Lucy Burdette, you’re getting conch fritters. Down in Texas, it’s all about the chili and brisket. And here in New England you’re guaranteed a masterclass in real-deal chowders, baked beans, as well as some delicious ethnic meals.

I pulled a few community cookbooks from the shelf and opened one at random to see what I might find. I could have chosen from sections on Meats, Fish, or Vegetables, but being me, I went straight to Desserts and found this recipe on Pretzel Salad that I had to give a try.

Pretzel Salad

From the kitchen of Karen B. in the Village Street School Cookbook, It Takes a Village

Pretzel Salad Ingredients:

• 2 cups coarsely chopped pretzels (no salt)

• 1 ½ sticks melted butter (I changed this from the original ¾ cup)

• 4 tbsp sugar (for the crust)

• 8 oz cream cheese

• 1 cup sugar (for the filling)

• 8 oz Cool Whip, (the original recipe calls for thawed but mine wasn’t frozen)

• 6 oz strawberry Jell-O

• 2 cups boiling water

• 20 oz frozen sliced strawberries

Instructions:

Prepare the Crust: Mix the chopped pretzels, melted butter, and 4 tablespoons of sugar to form a crumb crust. Gently press the mixture into a greased 13x9 baking dish. (I used a 12x8 dish) Make the mixture go up the sides a little and make sure there are no holes in the bottom or the mixture will go below the crust.)

Bake & Cool: Bake the crust for 6 minutes at 400°F. (I found it was better to set the oven at 350° F. Watch it carefully because it can burn.) Set aside to cool completely.

Prepare the Topping: Dissolve the strawberry Jell-O in 2 cups of boiling water. Add the partially thawed strawberries and allow them to finish thawing in the hot mixture.

Make the Filling: Cream together the cream cheese and 1 cup of sugar until smooth. 

Gently fold in the thawed Cool Whip. 

Pro Tip: Don’t take too long making the filling because the cold strawberries will make the Jell-O start to set.

Layer: Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the cooled pretzel crust. 

Then pour the strawberry/Jell-O mixture carefully over the top of the cheese layer.

Pro-tip: When spreading the cream cheese layer, make sure to spread it all the way to the edges of the pan to create a "seal." This prevents the Jell-O from seeping down and making the pretzel crust soggy.

Chill: Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. 

Serve: I think you're going to like, make that love, this. If you try it, let me know if you agree.

What about you? Do you like recipes from community cookbooks, or do you prefer those from well known cooks like Julia, Lidia, or Jacques? Let me know in the comments to be entered in a drawing for Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories.

Ang Pompano is a mystery author, editor, publisher and blogger. He writes the Blue Palmetto Detective Agency, and the Reluctant Food Columnist series, both published by Level Best Books. In addition to his writing, Ang is a co-founder of Crime Spell Books and serves as co-editor of the Best New England Crime Stories anthology. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Annette, an artist, and their two rescue dogs, Dexter and Alfie.

Just Released!

Diet of Death

by Ang Pompano

The first in the Reluctant Food Columnist series.

Buy Link

Betty Ann Green is a beloved culinary icon…who doesn’t exist. She is the brilliant, beautiful illusion created by two unlikely collaborators. Behind the façade is Quincy Lazzaro, a culinarily challenged writer whose witty, sharp prose is the public face of Betty, while those flawless, genius recipes are all thanks to his octogenarian neighbor, Mary Ticarelli.
When the arrogant diet guru, Dr. Alan Tolzer, inventor of the Westport Diet, demands a face-to-face interview, Quincy reluctantly steps in as Betty’s frontman, only for Tolzer to drop dead. The police call it natural causes, but Quincy knows better. He sees it as the investigative break he’s been waiting for.
Now, caught between a crime-solving grandma, a no-nonsense detective girlfriend, and a killer who may be one step ahead, Quincy must unravel the mystery before the killer strikes again.

When It’s Time for Leaving

by Ang Pompano

Buy Link

Al DeLucia walked away from the police—and his past. But when his long-lost father leaves him a detective agency in Savannah, Al finds himself trapped between family secrets and a murder on the agency’s dock. Partnered with Maxine Brophy, a fierce detective who doesn’t trust him, Al is pulled into a deadly search through Savannah and the Okefenokee Swamp—where the truth about the case, and his father, may cost him everything.

Blood Ties and Deadly Lies

by Ang Pompano

Buy Link

Al DeLucia returns to Sachem Creek expecting a kayak race and a chance to confront his childhood bully, Abe Cromwell. Instead, he finds a dead lawyer, a web of deceit, and Abe claiming they’re brothers by DNA. Reluctantly joined by Maxine Brophy, his formidable partner and girlfriend, Al dives into a murder investigation that exposes land swindles, hidden maps, and buried family secrets. In a town where the past won’t stay buried, Al must face truths that could upend everything.

Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories 2025

Edited by

Christine Bagley, Susan Oleksiw, Ang Pompano, 

and Leslie Wheeler

BUY LINK

Every year the anthology brings welcome surprises and satisfactions, and this year is no different, featuring stories by 21 of New England’s best crime writers.
Includes “Minnie the Air Raid Warden” by Ang Pompano.