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    Home » Recipes » Desserts

    Fruit Pizza

    Published: Jan 19, 2023 by Janessa

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    With a buttery shortbread crust, a thick cream cheese layer and colorful fresh fruit, this fruit pizza recipe is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. A fun dessert to make and so pretty to eat, get creative with all of your favorite fruits and enjoy this summer treat!

    Jump to:
    • The Ingredients
    • The Method
    • Make Ahead and Storage
    • Make it Your Own
    • Alternate Baking Pans
    • Serving Ideas
    • Dietary Notes
    • And if you liked this recipe...
    • Fruit Pizza with Shortbread Crust
    • Comments
    Slice of fruit pizza on a plate with the rest of the fruit pizza in the background.

    Today we're trading out artisan pizza dough and savory toppings in favor of some sweeter slices of 'za.

    Let me introduce you to this simple fruit pizza- my all time favorite dessert!

    Easy yet impressive, it is made with a 3 ingredient shortbread crust then topped with a sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting and plenty of fruit.

    While this light dessert has a summery vibe, it really is great for any time. I love to serve it in the winter time as a way to add some "sunshine" to the meal.

    The Ingredients

    • Shortbread Crust
      • Butter- Salted or unsalted butter can be used.
      • Whole Wheat Flour- All purpose flour also works or see the make it your own section for details on making it gluten free.
      • White Sugar- Brown sugar can be used instead.
    • Frosting
      • Cream Cheese- Be sure to use blocks of cream cheese and not cream cheese spread.
      • Powdered Sugar
      • Vanilla Extract
    • Toppings (2-3 cups total)
      • Sliced Fresh Fruit (best)- Use your favorite fresh seasonal fruit and berries for decorating. I don't recommend using apples, bananas or any other type of fruit that browns quickly unless you are serving it immediately.
      • Canned Fruit- Oranges and pineapple are fine to use- just be sure to drain them first.
      • Frozen Fruit- Can be thawed and used but the juices may bleed a bit into the frosting.

    The Method

    1. Make the shortbread cookie crust. In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Mix in the flour. Press into the bottom of a 9 inch tart pan or springform pan (see the section about alternate baking pans for more options). Bake at 350 for 11-15 minutes until lightly golden brown. Allow to cool completely before decorating.

    2. Make the frosting. With a hand mixer, beat together the softened cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and vanilla extract in a medium bowl until smooth.

    Bowl of fruit prepared for fruit pizza including sliced strawberries, oranges, kiwi and grapes. Crust topped with cream cheese sauce next to the bowls.

    3. Prepare your fruit. Wash your fresh fruit, drain any canned fruit and thaw frozen fruit that you are using. Cut into desired sizes. TIP: I like to assemble the fruit first on a plate to get an idea of my design and then transfer it to the pizza.

    Fruit assembled into a design on a plate before putting it on the pizza.

    4. Decorate pizza. Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the cooled crust and top with fruit. Get creative!

    • For reference, I used:
      • Tart One:
        • ½ cup sliced (¼ inch thick) strawberries
        • 2 sliced (¼ inch thick) kiwi
        • ½ cup sliced (in half) red grapes
        • ½ cup canned mandarin oranges, drained
      • Tart Two
        • 1 cup sliced (¼ inch thick) strawberries
        • ½ cup canned mandarin oranges
        • ½ cup sliced (in half) red grapes
    Fruit pizza assembled with strawberries, kiwi, grapes and oranges.
    Tart 1
    Assembled fruit pizza with oranges, strawberries and grapes.
    Tart 2

    5. Cover and chill.

    6. Slice and serve. Use a pizza cutter or sharp knife to cut into desired sizes of pizza slices and serve.

    Make Ahead and Storage

    To Make Ahead: The base can be made up to 2 days ahead. Cover and store at room temperature. The entire dessert can be assembled up to 1 day ahead. Cover and store in the refrigerator.

    To Store: Cover with plastic wrap or place in an airtight container and store leftover fruit pizza in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. The base will soften the longer that it sits but will still be delicious!

    To Freeze: The shortbread base and frosting can both be frozen but I don't recommend freezing the assembled dessert as the fruit will become mushy with thawing.

    Assembled frut pizza before slicing.

    Make it Your Own

    • Add a Glaze- Give the fruit a nice shine and finished look to the dessert with just two extra ingredients:
      • Peach Jam (2 tablespoons)- Another favorite flavor will work (strawberry, apricot, etc.) but darker jams and jams with a lot of seeds will be visible.
      • Water (½ tablespoon)
      • Whisk the jam and water together in a small bowl and use a pastry brush to lightly coat the fruit tart.
    • Chocolate Strawberry Pizza- Spread a thick layer of Chocolate Hummus on top in place of the cream cheese frosting. Top with sliced fresh strawberries.
    • Make It Gluten Free- You have two options-
      • 1:1 Gluten Free Flour- I have made it this way and it turns out well.
      • Oat Flour- Applying what I learned from making Oat Flour Cookies, I have had success with increasing the oat flour to 90 g (¾ cup lightly packed) to replace the whole wheat flour.

    Alternate Baking Pans

    If you don't have a spring form or tart pan, you can use:

    • a 9 inch round cake pan or pie dish- Line it with parchment for easy removal for cutting once chilled.
    • a baking sheet- Roll the crust dough out free form on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
    • a 12 inch pizza pan- Double the recipe (2x on the recipe card) for the perfect amount to fit the pan.

    Note: If you use a glass pan instead of metal, the baking time will likely increase by a couple of minutes.

    Two assembled fruit pizzas sitting on a countertop.

    Serving Ideas

    Give your fruit pizza some extra flair by serving with some garnishes such as:

    • Chocolate syrup or ganache
    • Orange zest
    • Whipped cream

    Dietary Notes

    If you have dietary restrictions, check the packaging of specific ingredients that you use to ensure they are compliant. This recipe is:

    • Gluten Free- If you use 1:1 gluten free flour or certified gluten free oat flour.
    • Vegetarian

    And if you liked this recipe...

    ...you might also like:

    • Butter Tart Bars
    • Lava Cakes
    • Coconut Flour Brownies
    • Apple Crisp

    Fruit Pizza with Shortbread Crust

    The definition of the perfect summer dessert, this colorful dessert pizza has a shortbread cookie dough crust, is topped with tangy cream cheese frosting and includes plenty of fresh fruit slices.
    5 from 29 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 45 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes
    Chill Time: 2 hours hours
    Total Time: 3 hours hours
    Servings: 6 slices
    Calories: 254kcal

    Ingredients

    • ⅓ cup butter at room temperature
    • ¼ cup granulated sugar
    • ½ cup +2 tablespoon whole wheat flour
    • 4 oz cream cheese at room temperature
    • 2 tablespoon icing sugar
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 2-3 cups fruit for decorating
    US Customary - Metric
    (Prevent your screen from going dark)

    Instructions

    • Preheat the oven to 350 °F. In a medium bowl, cream together butter and granulated sugar. Add the flour and mix until well combined and press into a 9 inch springform or tart pan. Bake for 11-15 minutes until lightly browned and allow to cool completely before decorating.
    • In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese, vanilla and icing sugar until smooth. Spread over the crust.
    • Prepare your fruit. Drain canned oranges, wash berries, slice kiwis and strawberries and set aside. I like to assemble the fruit first on a plate to get an idea of my design and then transfer it to the pizza.
    • Top the pizza with the prepared fruit. Get creative!
    • Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to 1 day. Slice and serve.

    Notes

    Leftovers
    Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 254kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 159mg | Potassium: 101mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 821IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 1mg
    Did you make this recipe?Let me know what you thought in the comments below!

    More Desserts!

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    • Apple Crisp Storage
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    Reader Interactions

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    1. Sandy

      December 09, 2021 at 8:14 am

      5 stars
      When I saw the picture I thought this look so pretty and delicious and probably hard to do. Then when I look at the recipe it looks simple enough that I thought I could do it and I did and it came out beautifully. All the guests like it , I was really proud of myself . I really like the part that I can use the fruit that I like and arrange to the design that I want. It was really fun to make.

      Reply
    2. Sara

      July 31, 2022 at 5:59 pm

      5 stars
      Such a great idea, my kids have been asking for dessert pizza for a while, but all the recipes I found where sugar over load. We loved the crust and amount of different fruits we could layer on these.

      Reply
      • Janessa

        July 31, 2022 at 10:55 pm

        Thank you for your kind review, Sara!

        Reply
    3. Deb

      July 31, 2022 at 6:17 pm

      5 stars
      This was so awesome. Love the fruit combinations. What flavor.

      Reply
      • Janessa

        July 31, 2022 at 10:55 pm

        I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Deb!

        Reply
    4. Tara

      July 31, 2022 at 8:03 pm

      5 stars
      I can see why this is your favorite dessert. It is such a fun treat! I love how it comes together so easily too.

      Reply
      • Janessa

        July 31, 2022 at 10:55 pm

        Thank you for your kind review, Tara!

        Reply
    5. Kris

      July 31, 2022 at 8:09 pm

      5 stars
      This was such a fun and tasty recipe! My kiddos really enjoyed it. Thank you. 🙂

      Reply
      • Janessa

        July 31, 2022 at 10:56 pm

        I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Kris!

        Reply
    6. Ieva

      July 31, 2022 at 10:46 pm

      5 stars
      We had a lot of fun cooking these with my 7-year-old niece! Delicious and healthier dessert! Really easy too!

      Reply
      • Janessa

        July 31, 2022 at 10:56 pm

        I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Ieva!

        Reply

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    Janessa

    Hi, I'm Janessa and I'm passionate about sharing recipes that are made with wholesome ingredients, are quick and easy and most importantly, delicious!

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