If you love cookie cake (and who the heck doesn't!) this is a light and refreshing take on it. I'll have to admit, I like my desserts mostly chocolate with a little bit of non-chocolate thrown in. I'd be happy eating chocolate chip cookies for the rest of my life. Chocolate cake? I'm your girl. So fruit pizza wasn't 100% up my alley when I saw it in the book. But, having made it, I can see the appeal! This would be perfect to take to a summer BBQ or something similar. And it's such a pretty dessert. It's sure to get all the praises.
The ingredients are super simple. One package of refrigerated sugar cookie dough (like the ones that come in the tube, don't over think it). You can either get a tube of the sugar cookie dough or some that are in the tube pre-sliced, it doesn't really matter, whatever strikes your fancy. You'll also need a container of apricot preserves, some fruit juices, 8oz cream cheese, granulated sugar, pineapple chunks, mandarin oranges, and strawberries and/or bananas. Optional add-ons include: whip cream, chopped pecans and coconut.
To get started you'll want to preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While it's preheating take your sugar cookie dough and spread it out on the top of a pizza pan. I used a 14 inch pizza pan, but you can use whatever you have around, obviously if it's a smaller pan it'll be a thicker pizza. Nobody will be sad about what pan you use, promise. The cookies will expand in the oven so you don't need to fill out the whole pizza pan with the dough, just make sure that you get the dough mushed close enough together that it'll expand and form one giant cookie. Finger prints and mush marks should work out in the oven too. I try to make sure the edges look a little even though, that won't work out as easily.
See, look at that lumpy little thing. I put it in the oven following the instructions on the package. Mine called for 11 - 15 minutes, I ended up baking it for 13 minutes, but you've made cookies before, cook it until it's done (brown on the edges). The cookie will continue baking on the sheet when you pull it out so you'll want it to be a teeny bit giggly when you pull it out otherwise it'll be very tough. Look for good brown edges to determine when it's done.
See, the oven makes it pretty.
After you pull it out of the oven let it cool completely down. I gave mine 30 minutes and it was plenty of time. While it was chilling I took the cream cheese out of the refrigerator. This was probably unnecessary, but it made me happy.
Once it's chilled you can cream together the 8oz. of cream cheese with the 1/3 cup of sugar and the 1 Tbsp. of fruit juices. Spread that delightful mixture on top of the chilled cookie. You're going to cover it entirely with fruit so it doesn't have to be perfect, but it's really lovely so you'll want to get as much of it on the cookie as you can.
Then it's time for the fun part!
Start by adding your mandarin oranges around the outside of the cookie. I had enough oranges that I could do two rounds. Make some kind of pattern that makes your soul happy. There is no wrong way to do this. This would probably be a pretty fun activity for a kid to do. I don't have kids, take that with a grain of salt.
Then add your pineapple chunks. Followed by the strawberries and bananas in the center. I didn't use bananas this time, but I've had it with bananas before, it's great. Just add them in whatever pattern makes you happiest.
After that you can add the optional toppings. I highly recommend the apricot preserves as a not-optional topping, it's wonderful. The recipe says to heat it up and drizzle it on. I have so far never been successful in drizzling preserves so I heat it up and plop it on the pizza. It still tastes good. it's fine. If you want to add pecans go for it, it'll add a bit of a nice crunch. You can also add chopped coconut. We're not big coconut fans over here so I skipped that step. But you do you.
And then you're done. Easy breezy!
To serve, cut it and top with whipped cream. Think about all the fruit you're eating and consider this a nice lovely healthy dessert (and ignore the cookie bit and the creamed cheese bit).
Enjoy!
FRUIT PIZZA
Serves: 8 | Prep Time: 25 Minutes | Cook Time: 15 Minutes
Ingredients
1 package refrigerated sugar cookie dough
8 oz. cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. fruit juices
2 cups Mandarin Oranges, well drained
1 can (8 oz.) pineapple chunks, well drained
Sliced strawberries or bananas
Apricot Preserves (or orange marmalade)
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1/2 cup chopped coconut
Whipped topping
Instructions
Placed cookie dough on a pizza pan, spread the cookie dough out so that the cookies will run together when they are baked. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown following package instructions. Let cool completely.
Cream together cream cheese, sugar and fruit juices. Spread the mixture on top of the chilled cookie.
Arrange in a circle on the outside edge of the crust the mandarin oranges, just inside the mandarin oranges place the pineapple chunks. Create an inner circle of sliced strawberries or sliced bananas (or both).
heat and spoon the apricot preserves (or orange marmalade) on top of the fruit.
Optionally add the pecans and chopped coconut.
Serve with the whipped cream.