If you’ve never tried fruit pizza, what are you waiting for?
Fruit pizza is just what it sounds like. There is a crust and fruit toppings, only the crust tends to be sweeter than your average pizza crust. Cream cheese is often added as an alternative to the mozzarella cheese that would be on an Italian style pizza. The topping is healthy fruit, which can be of any variety you choose.
Fruit pizza is easy to put together and is certainly a crowd pleaser. Not only are fruit pizzas delightful to look at, but they provide a healthier alternative to typical high-fat desserts.
You can arrange the fruit in an attractive pattern and choose fruits that represent a variety of colors and shapes to make your fruit pizza look appealing.
Cookie dough is commonly used for the crust in fruit pizza, but in the second fruit pizza recipe we have, you can enjoy the crunch of rice cereal mixed with butter and marshmallows for a different variation. Changing the flavor and texture of the crust is an easy way to create your own kind of fruit pizza.
And of course, you can also add whatever fruit topping you choose. Strawberries and blueberries can give your pizza a patriotic look. Bananas, cantaloupes, and oranges will give your pizza a light, summery look. Cranberries, pomegranates, and kiwis can be a good fall or winter dish and can even be the perfect addition for a winter holiday meal.
Another way you can play with the dish to make it a little more sinful is to drizzle fudge or caramel over the top. You can even dip the fruits in a chocolate dip and let it harden before adding them to the top of your pizza.
Below is a traditional fruit pizza recipe. Following that is the recipe for Rice Krispie Treat Fruit Pizza. Let us know which is your favorite.
Fruit Pizza Recipe
Ingredients:
1 package refrigerated sugar cookie dough (slice and bake type)
1 pk (8-oz) cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup strawberries
1 cup bananas
1 cup fresh or canned peach slices
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1 Tablespoon water
Directions:
1. Slice the cookie dough thin.
2. Place cookie slices on a 14 inch pizza pan, overlapping slightly.
3. Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool slightly.
4. Cream together cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Spread evenly on cooled cookie crust.
5. Starting at center, put strawberries, then a circle of banana slices; next a circle of peach slices; and last a circle of blueberries. If this does not completely cover pizza pan, add another circle of fresh fruit, like kiwi or fresh white grapes.
6. Mix orange marmalade and water and pour evenly over the fruit as a glaze. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
Rice Krispie Treat Fruit Pizza Recipe
Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
32 large marshmallows
5 cups crisp rice cereal
8 ounces cream cheese
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
16 strawberries, halved
1 banana, peeled and sliced
2 kiwis, peeled and chopped
2 Tablespoons apricot jam
1 1/2 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons heavy cream
2 teaspoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
1. In a medium saucepan, combine the butter and marshmallows. Stir over low heat until melted. Remove pan from heat and stir in the crisp rice cereal.
2. Prepare a pizza pan by lightly coating with vegetable oil spray. Press the cereal mixture evenly onto the pizza pan. Place into the refrigerator to cool.
3. To make the sauce, combine cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and cocoa in a small bowl. Beat until smooth and creamy. Spread evenly over the pizza crust.
4. Arrange the strawberries, bananas, and kiwi slices over the crust to look like pizza toppings.
5. In a small cup, mix together the apricot jam with the water. Dab onto the fruit with a brush. This will keep the fruit from turning brown.
6. Whip the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla until stiff, and then drop dabs of whipped cream onto the pizza. Slice like a pizza, but thinner. This is a very rich dessert.
Consider Growing Your Own Fruit
Growing your own fruit for this, and similar, desserts is a great idea! Nothing beats fresh fruit, and it's generally cheaper than buying it from the store. Plus, you have control over what sort of fertilizers and pesticides are used on the produce. While growing your own fruit takes time and requires space, it's definitely worth it!
Selecting the fruit you want to grow is going to depend on your family's preferences. If you want fruit that would work well for a dessert like this, try strawberries or blueberries. Both of these fruits also work in a multitude of other desserts, like chocolate-covered strawberries or blueberry pie. They also work great on their own as snacks or desserts, too!
Taking your climate into consideration is important when thinking about what fruits to grow. Not every fruit is going to grow in every climate. Make sure your growing season is long enough for the fruit you want to grow. If you have a short growing season, you may need to start your fruit inside and transplant it outside once the risk of frost has gone away.
Growing your own fruit is also an activity that you can do with your kids. This is a great way to teach them gardening skills, and an appreciation for the food that they eat. If your kids actually have to put some work into getting the food they eat, it will teach them to appreciate it. Plus, having extra hands to help will speed up the planting and harvesting process!