Strawberry Dessert Pizza

 
What a fun dessert! This recipe originally called for using one (18 oz.) tube of refrigerated sugar cookie dough. I'm sure you can still use store bought. But, I made it with my own sugar cookie recipe. I found the sugar cookie recipe on Pinterest oh so many years ago. Ever since then this recipe is my go to sugar cookie recipe. The recipe makes enough for a dessert pizza or about two to three dozen cut out cookies. Definitely enough for dessert and cookies for those in our household with a sweet tooth...

Another fun fruit pizza is Apple Pie Pizza. This pizza is actually made with a thin store bought pizza crust. I personally think the sugar cookie recipe is better, but that's just me. Try it both ways and see which one works for you. Recipe for the Apple Pie Dessert Pizza is at the end of this post.
I love to make sugar cookie birthday cookies. Kind of the same way you make the pizza. I'll have a post on sugar cookie birthday cookies soon.

Strawberry Dessert Pizza
Yield 16 servings
Ingredients:
  • 1 package (18 ounces) refrigerated sugar cookie dough or Sugar Cookie Recipe below
  • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 4 cups assorted fresh fruit such as sliced strawberries, kiwi, bananas or peaches; blueberries or raspberries
Directions:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  
  2. For crust shape cookie dough into a ball. Place dough in center of medium round stone with handles; flatten slightly with palm of hand. 
  3. Using lightly floured rolling pin, roll out dough to 12 inch circle, about1/4 inch thick.
  4.  Bake 18-20 minutes or until light golden brown, cool 10 minutes. 
  5. Carefully loosen cookie from stone using bread knife.  Cool completely.  
  6. For topping, combine cream cheese and sugar in Small Batter Bowl; mix well. 
  7. Spread mixture evenly over top of cookie. 
  8. Slice strawberries, peeled kiwi, or bananas using slicer, and slice peaches using Paring Knife. Arrange fruit over cream cheese mixture. 
  9. Refrigerate. Cut into 16 wedges with Pizza Cutter.      
 Alternative to store bought cookie dough
This recipe for sugar cookies is my favorite. If you would rather use homemade cookie dough, I recommend this recipe. It's the best sugar cookie recipe ever. 
 
Homemade Rolled Sugar Cookie Recipe
Ingredients:
  • 1 1/2 cups butter, softened                        
  • 2 cups white sugar                                     
  • 4 eggs                                                           
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract                                                                  
  • 5 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsps. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. salt
Directions:
  1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
  2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.  Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
  3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely before frosting.
Frosting:
I like to use butter cream frosting on my cookies, thinned out a little. This recipe makes the best buttercream. But the recipe for the Dessert Pizza calls for cream cheese and sugar. I would go with the cream cheese and sugar. It's less sweet and who doesn't love cream cheese.

If you are making the cookies above, I would use this recipe for frosting the cookies. 

Ingredients:
1/2 c. shortening
1/2 c. margarine or butter
4 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla (I use clear vanilla to keep the frosting as white as it can be)
1/2 tsp. almond extract
milk   (add a little at a time to the consistency that you want

Directions:
  1. Beat shortening and margarine until the color is almost white.  This will take a few minutes
  2. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, almond extract and about a scant 1/4 cup milk and beat until blended.  Add more milk to get to your consistency. Remember a little milk goes a long way.  Add milk by tablespoons.

These are really good desserts. They are not only fun for the little ones. They are great for kids of any age. I love to share recipes and ideas that I think everyone would enjoy. If interested in any of these, just click on the picture or description and you will be redirected to the original author's post...
Apple Pie Dessert Pizza

One Final Thought...
This was truly a fun post.  The pictures alone make your mouth water. I do hope you will try one or all of these dessert pizzas.  They are all great!!!

Always remember..."Life's short...eat dessert first!"...words to live by!