Gourmet Cookie Bouquets Recipe Blog

Archive for the ‘Fruit’ Category

Dessert pizzas can be a fun surprise addition to the end of a meal or as a bring-along to a potluck dinner or church supper. They are so easy to make that you’ll wonder why you didn’t start making dessert pizzas sooner. And you can be really creative with the toppings so you never have to make the same dessert pizza twice!

Basically, a dessert pizza looks like a savory pizza, but it is made with a cookie crust. You can use refrigerated cookie dough or you can make your own sugar cookie dough and press it down onto a pizza pan. Toppings can be anything from apples to strawberries to kiwis and grapes. Blueberries and raspberries when they are in season are a wonderful choice.

The “sauce” for the dessert pizza is really cream cheese. Just spread it over the cookie dough when it comes out of the oven and then add your toppings. You do have to wait until the cookie is baked and cooled before adding your sauce and toppings, unlike a real pizza.

Here are some recipes for these pizza gourmet desserts:

Fruit Pizza

Courtesy of whatscookingamerica.com

Ingredients:

• 1 (20-ounce) package refrigerated cookie dough
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or other flavoring (almond, orange, or lemon)
• Fresh blueberries, banana slices, mandarin orange sections,
• seedless grapes, strawberry halves, kiwi fruit slices, (or any other fruit you want), well drained
• 1/2 cup orange, peach, or apricot preserves
• 1 tablespoon water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Line an ungreased 14-inch pizza pan with cookie dough cut in 1/8-inch slices, overlapping slightly. Bake 12 minutes or until light brown; remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract or other flavoring; spread over cookie crust. Arrange fruit over cream cheese layer in any design you want (use your imagination).

In a small saucepan over very low heat, make a glaze by heating preserves and water. Brush glaze over fruit, making sure to cover the fruit that will turn dark. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Homemade Apple Pizza

Courtesy of tammysrecipes.com

A soft homemade pizza crust with a cream cheese spread and apple slices, topped with a crumb topping

Yield: 12-16 slices

Ingredients:

Pizza Crust:

• 1 cup warm water (112-115 degrees F)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon dry yeast

Apple topping:

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 large cooking apples, peeled and sliced thinly
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• Cream cheese spread:
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Crumb topping:

• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup soft butter
• 1/3 cup quick oats

Instructions:

1. Making the crust: First, combine water, salt, sugar, and oil in a small bowl. Whisk together flour and yeast in a large bowl. Add wet ingredients and knead into a smooth dough, adding additional flour if needed. Knead for about 5 minutes, cover dough with a towel, and then set aside to rest while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

2. Making the apple topping: Whisk together the flour, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium-sized saucepan. Add butter and apples, and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer just until apples are tender. Set aside to cool.

3. Make the cream cheese spread by combining the cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and nutmeg in a bowl and beating until smooth. Set aside.

4. Combine crumb topping ingredients until mixed and crumbly.

5. Punch down dough from step 1, and spread onto a greased 16-inch round pizza pan, or onto pan(s) of your choice. Gently spread cream cheese over dough with a knife or spatula. Pour apple mixture evenly over cream cheese. Sprinkle with crumb topping.

6. Cover pizza and let set in a warm place for about 15-20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake pizza in the center of the oven for 25-30 minutes, until done.

When you think of apples, you probably think red or green.  There are also a variety of apples that are yellow in color and delicious in flavor! Some types are:

Golden Delicious Apples -This is the most popular type of yellow apple. It is perfect for snacking, baking and making mouthwatering pies, sauces and salads.

Ginger Gold - August to November is the season for this type of yellow apple. You will love its sweet and sour flavor. Pies and sauces made from it are delectable. It doesn’t freeze well, however.

Braeburn - These are exquisite yellow apples with an orange red tinge. They are delicious and can be eaten raw.

Honey Crisp -You can prepare yummy sauces and salads from this luscious yellowish red apple. It is not used for pies. It can be frozen for future use.

Jona Gold - The tangy sweetness of this yellow apple makes it a delightful snack. Its season extends from September to April. You can use it to make salads and pies.

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Tired of baking cookies? Here is a great recipe that uses Golden Delicious apples and sweet honey to create a scrumptious cake.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup vegetable shortening
3 large eggs
3/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup warm coffee
2 cups Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Golden Apple and Honey Topping:
1 Golden Delicious apple, cored and sliced
1/3 cup honey

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 10-inch angel food or bundt pan.
2. In large bowl, beat sugar and shortening until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in honey and lemon zest. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and nutmeg. Add to sugar mixture alternately with coffee, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Stir in apples and nuts.
3. Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake 1 hour and 10 minutes or until wooden pick inserted near center comes out clean.
4. Meanwhile, prepare Golden Apple and Honey Topping: In small skillet, heat honey; add apple. Cook, turning slices occasionally, until tender and glazed.
5. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes; remove from pan and cool completely. Arrange apples on top of cake and serve.

Looking for more tasty apple recipes? Try these Apple Bar Bites.

Don't be fooled, these are not banana muffins!  This is a light, fluffy and sweet banana cupcake!  Perfect for a Sunday brunch, baby shower favors, or any time you're looking for a delicious treat!

You can frost these however you like.  I've tried a cream cheese frosting and a chocolate frosting, and both were amazing!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

FROSTING:

• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk

Directions:cu

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugar. Add the eggs, vanilla, bananas and buttermilk. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to banana mixture. Fill 18 paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.
2. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. In a small mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar and enough milk to achieve desired spreading consistency. Frost cupcakes.

There are so many unique ways to decorate cupcakes these days. See tons of ideas for cupcake recipes.

This is my absolute favorite gourmet dessert to make for the 4th of July.  It's really quite simple, it tastes delicious and the kids can help out!

Strawberries and blueberries are abundant this time of year, and made it easy to create the stars and stripes of our grand flag.

Ingredients:

4 cups fresh strawberries

1 pkg.  (12 oz.) frozen prepared pound cake, thawed, cut into 14 slices

1-1/3 cups blueberries, divided

1 tub  (12 oz.) Cool Whip Whipped Topping, thawed

Directions:

1. Slice 1 cup strawberries; halve remaining strawberries.

2. Cover bottom of 13x9-inch dish with cake slices; top with sliced strawberries and 1 cup blueberries. Spread Cool Whip over berries.

3. Arrange strawberry halves and remaining blueberries on COOL WHIP to resemble a US flag. Keep refrigerated.

Celebrate Independence Day with these other Fourth Of July Dessert Recipes.