Easter Fruit Pizza

🧾What You’ll Need

Ingredients

The good news: this fruit pizza is made with common baking ingredients, so you probably already have most, if not all, of the ingredients you’ll need! Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you make this recipe. (Links are affiliate links and I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.)

For the Cookie Crust

I love making fruit pizza with a homemade cookie crust. However, to save time feel free to use a premade storebought cookie dough in place of the ingredients below.

• Flour: Use all-purpose flour for the base of the cookie dough. Make sure to measure carefully, using a food scale if possible.
• Baking soda
• Unsalted butter and salt: Use unsalted butter that has been softened to room temperature. If you only have salted butter, omit the excess salt.
• Sugar: Use regular, white granulated sugar.
• Lemon zest: I love the fresh taste that a bit of lemon zest gives to the sugar cookie crust. If you don’t have 2 large lemons, you can swap in another citrus zest, like orange or grapefruit, or just omit it entirely.
• Eggs: It’s important to use large eggs (not extra large or medium). Bring them to room temperature before getting started.
• Cream: You can use either heavy cream or heavy whipping cream.
• Lemon extract: To flavor the cookie crust, use a high-quality lemon extract.

For the Frosting

Looking for a quicker way to frost the crust? You can use a storebought cream cheese frosting, other canned frosting, or even storebought strawberry cream cheese spread instead of making your own.

• Cream cheese: Use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese for the best flavor. Bring it to room temperature to make it easier to mix with the other ingredients.
• Strawberry jam: To flavor the frosting, you’ll need strawberry jam. Bring it to room temperature before mixing it into the frosting to prevent lumps. If desired, you can use other flavors of jam like raspberry or cherry.
• Powdered sugar: Helps to sweeten and thicken the frosting.

For the Toppings and Glaze

• Fresh fruit: You’ll want to gather ALL THE FRUIT — the more colorful and bountiful, the better! Feel free to use whatever is readily available to you, but my personal must-haves are lots of fresh berries, mangoes, clementine slices, and grapes. Combined, these have a lot of different colors and textures that make the fruit pizza look fresh and vibrant. If you have access to fun fruits like dragon fruit or star fruit (featured below!) that’s just the cherry on top…pardon the fruity pun. ;)You’ll need about 8 cups of assorted fresh fruit, washed and sliced. The only fruit I don’t recommend is bananas because of how quickly they brown.
• Apple jelly: To give the glaze a lovely shine, use apple jelly, or other light-colored jelly. It also prevents the fruit from wilting and drying out after it’s cut.
• Water: To thin the glaze.

Equipment

You’ll only need a few basic kitchen tools to make this Easter dessert. Here’s what you should know. (Links are affiliate links and I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.)

• Microplane: Use a microplane to zest fresh lemons.
• Mixer: You’ll want a mixer to whip up the cookie dough and cream cheese frosting. I prefer using a stand mixer, but you can also use a hand mixer.
• Plastic wrap: It’s helpful to have some plastic wrap on hand to wrap the dough in before chilling it.
• Rolling pin: For easy rolling, place your dough between two sheets of parchment paper and use a rolling pin to smooth it out.
• Parchment paper: The easiest way to move a giant cookie crust around? Bake it on parchment so you can slide it right off the baking sheet, no awkward contortions required!
• Baking sheet: You’ll want to use a half-sheet pan (approx 13×18″) so you have enough room for the large cookie crust. Look for a sturdy one with a thick bottom so the bottom of the cookie doesn’t burn before it’s cooked through. I use and love these Nordic Ware baking sheets.
• Cookie cutters: If you want to cut shapes into some of the fruit slices, you can use small cookie cutters. You could use flowers, hearts, stars and more!
• Pastry brush: Use a pastry brush to glaze the top of the pizza.
• Pizza cutter: I like to use a pizza cutter for slicing up the fruit pizza. You can also use a large knife.

1. Beat cream cheese: Use a handmixer to beat 8 oz cream cheese until smooth and free of lumps.
2. Mix in jam and sugar: Add 1/3 cup strawberry jam and 6 oz (1 1/2 cups) powdered sugar, beat until well-mixed.
3. Prep the fruit: Time to get slicing! Prep your fruit right before you are ready to use it. Cut up any large fruit (strawberries, mangoes, star fruit, etc) into slices. For larger grapes and berries, you might want to cut them in half so it’s easier to decorate with them. Small berries can be left whole. If desired, use small cutters on some of the slices to make pretty shapes.

💭Variations

There are a million and one ways to make a fruit pizza! Consider some of these twists:

• Use another flavor in your cream cheese: Lemon, orange, and raspberry would all be delicious.
• Decorate for another holiday: Try a Fourth of July variation in the shape of a flag with red and blue berries. Halloween time? Make the base in the shape of a pumpkin, use pumpkin spice cream cheese, and fill the top with citrus fruits to keep the orange theme.
• Make the pizzas personal-sized: Mini fruit pizzas are the cutest! Make palm-sized cookie crusts so everyone gets their own. Use an egg cutter to make the mini pizzas look like Easter eggs!