Fruit Pizza

Tonight was my son's Baseball End of Season Party.  The hosts were making the main course - pasta with a meat or alfredo sauce.  We were asked to bring a salad or dessert.  I had originally planned on bringing a salad but my son did not approve of my choice.  So......I decided to make a fruit pizza instead.  It's a super easy potluck dish and can pass either as a fruit salad or a dessert.

First thing I did was buy lots and lots of fresh fruit.  Most of it is in season now so it isn't that expensive.  I brought it all home and thoroughly washed it.  I bought raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, kiwi and mangoes.

I dried it all on paper towels spread out on my countertop.

I also drained and dried some mandarin oranges.

While the fruit was drying, I got out some refrigerated sugar cookie dough.  You can always make homemade sugar cookie dough but for ease today, I used ready made dough.

I pressed it onto a cookie sheet.  You can vary the thickness of the dough as you like it.  Thinner dough will be crispier and thicker dough will be chewier.

Put the dough in the oven and bake until it's golden brown.  Cool on a wire rack.

While the dough was cooling, I cut up the strawberries, kiwi and mangoes.

Once the dough was completely cool, (this is really important - if it's not cool, the next step will be a disaster) I spread whipped cream cheese over the top.  I used plain whipped cream cheese but you could use any flavored kind too.  I have often made it with strawberry flavored cream cheese.

Then I sprinkled on the fruit.

I took a paper towel and gently pressed the fruit into the cream cheese.  Here's the finished - yummy - result!

I cut it into small squares and just let people help themselves to pieces right out of the pan.

"You learn to cook so you don't have to be a slave to recipes.  You get what's in season and you know what to do with it."  -Julia Child